Prologue
Somewhere in Gwynedd, Wales, UK
The sun glared down at the seemingly endless landscape of green mountains. Although the sun was high in the sky, the valleys between each range of hills were smothered in shadow. On the valley floors and part way up the mountains, there was a patchwork of stone walls, each area inside populated by flocks of sheep. Along one valley, the fields abruptly ended and gave way to a dense coniferous forest. About a mile into this forest, a group of four teenagers trudged along an overgrown trail. Their swollen backpacks clung to their sweaty backs like colossal parasites. One led the group, staring at a creased map and silently mouthing curses. The other three plodded a bit behind, everything about them looking spent and exhausted.
"Oi! Jones!" yelled one of the three. "When are we getting out of this damn forest?" The boy with the map continued for a couple of steps. Then he stopped, and turned to the rest of the group.
"Look, to tell the truth," he began, "This looks nothing like the trail we're supposed to take. We should turn back."
"Well that's just bleedin' great," the other one growled back. "I knew we should've gone right at that fork two miles back." Jones thought this was ironic, as he had chosen to go right, but Alex, the one shouting at him, had opted to go left. "Calm down, Alex. We're not lost. We only have to go back to the other path."
"Fine, but that'll take at least an hour. It'll be dark before we make it to the campsite. I'll blame you if we don't get our DofE."
After the group began to retrace their steps, there was little discussion. It was only when the clearing was in sight that Matt, the boy at the rear, felt eyes boring into his back. He turned, to find nothing but the now darkening forest. He would have just passed it off as an overactive imagination, if it wasn't for the fact that a bush some distance off shook for a moment. "I think there's something following us" he stammered. "That'll be the Velociraptors, then" stated Alex sarcastically. "This is Gwynedd, Matt. It's not like we're gonna be attacked by a monster, or something" It was at this point, however, that something caught Jones's eye. Partially hidden by a tree trunk lay the carcass of a sheep. Its body had been ripped open, and a crimson puddle had stained the ground around it. Noticing Jones's expression, the others turned round to see what he saw. They cautiously huddled around the carcass, their faces all riddled with fascination.
"What d'you think killed it?" asked Alex in a tone of awe.
"Dunno," replied Jones "But I don't want to find out. A sheepdog couldn't have done this."
"Seriously, we need to get away from here!" cried Matt. "God knows what's in this forest!"
"For once, I'm gonna agree with Matt. We need to keep moving."
Any more conversation was cut off by a throaty growl somewhere ahead in the gloom of the forest. Without hesitation, they broke into a run for the clearing. A heavy crunch of snapping twigs began to follow the teenagers. Its pace sped from a slow plod to a cacophony of thundering steps. Jones risked a glance behind him after they were in the clearing. From the forest burst what looked like a twelve foot long Komodo Dragon, but it had a powerful curved skull that seemed almost three feet long. Its needle-sharp teeth and mouth were smeared with the blood of the sheep carcass. However, Jones noted, the oddest thing about this animal was the green and brown-striped sail on its back, seemingly as tall as the beast was long.
The monster took a moment to allow its eyes to adjust to the afternoon sunlight before it throatily roared again and charged after the boys.