So yesterday wasn't a dream?

That was the first thought that entered my mind when I woke up. Just the idea that yesterday's events were some kind of fantasy I cooked up seemed silly now. It was obvious that I was staying here.

Whitetip, the raptor who seemed most calm, stirred beside me, her soft, fluffy feathers brushing against my arm.

Alone among the pack, she decided to sleep in the tent. The others seemed content, at least for the moment, to rest in a small thicket not far from my tent.

The very fact that I had tamed a raptor of all creatures still surprised me. It was absolutely incredible.

I always loved dinosaurs, and I was still mesmerized by them. Even after seeing their darker side. Indeed, while this environment was a harsh one, it remained the only place I really had right now.

I sat up. Whitetip opened a single eye, glaring at me for disturbing her sleep, before huffing in indignation as she returned to her sleep. I chuckled, and began to pet her neck.

She purred softly, but didn't do anything else.

I shook my head in exasperation.

Just like a dog.

I got up, and began to consider my options for the day.

I need food, and to bathe…

I stopped.

Yeah, that might not happen for a little while…

I sighed, missing some of the creature comforts from my old life.

I could also look for the materials necessary to make that rifle.

I decided that would be the wisest choice. I could hunt with the pack later. Right now I needed

something that would give me an edge over some of the wildlife.

So, having made up my mind, I headed out.

It was a hot day today, but luckily for me, a lot of the items I needed were much more conspicuous than on Earth. They seemed to be different types of rock distinguished by color, texture and hardness. I learned very quickly how to distinguish them.

Within the hour, I had enough to craft a supply of ammunition and my first rifle.

I grinned as I readied it.

Better make sure its works.

I took aim at a nearby tree. I held my breath, and pulled the trigger.

There was a loud "boom" as the characteristic orange flash let me know I had at least fired something. Less than a millisecond later, it hit the tree. Fragments of wood dispersed from the impact site, while a few birds fled at the sound.

I stopped. I had my own weapon. Perfect.

That's when I got another idea.

I went into the replicator, and began making something new. I began designing a house.

I noticed it would require a large amount of sandstone. Then…

I blinked. I noticed a tip above the resource requirements. It said "a replicator can create

specialized versions of itself to fulfill a specific task. This can streamline creating."

That single line changed everything.

Suddenly, I got an idea. A resource extraction unit. It would automatically…

I began to type it in. It resembled a mine in design. The "Pathfinder Mine" would automatically scan for resources in a ten mile radius, and extract them over time. From there, I would put them

in a "Pathfinder Forge", which would refine them into items. While they weren't complex or anything(the most I could make was another rifle), they would be much easier to use.

Other pieces of furniture or machinery unified under this enterprise, codenamed Project

Pathfinder after my new house, would allow me to develop something at least resembling of civilization.

Still, my existence here was tenuous at best. Who knew what was out here.

I spent the next three days gathering the required materials for the Forge and Mine. While nothing major happened, it was still, how shall we put it, frustrating.

I also got the idea of a time keeping device. Strangely, it did not go by our usual calendar(despite all my attempts to configure it or program it that way), but by a different one. A year lasted one hundred days of 24 hours each, with each year divided into months, each of which were similar

to a season on Earth.

It also said "1 UE" in terms of the calendar. When I looked it up, it said "Unification Era".

That was strange. What did that even mean?

I could be the chosen one to unite all the tribes of this world.

I laughed at my own joke.

Sighing, knowing I wouldn't figure this out, I turned and went back to finally finishing my new house.

It took some time. I could only produce one wall at a time with the forge, so it took another day and a half to set up my home(the other buildings were more like giant computers then buildings, so didn't needed walls or anything other then a control panel), but when it was finally ready, I

was nothing short of ecstatic.

It was a simple little house, but it was more than enough for me.

Unknown POV

"Where-" My sister panted, sweating bullets from the blazing, African heat. "Where are we gonna go? It's been miles and we haven't seen anyone around to help us.."

I could see the desperation and fear in my sister's face. Not that I could blame her.. I mean, it's gotta be well over 100 fucking degrees out here! If I'm telling the honest truth here, we really should be dead right now. We were both with our parents on a trip to Tanzania for an African safari for my 18th birthday, but things didn't exactly go as planned..

Flashback: Hours Earlier

"Oh quit the attitude. We're almost there!" My Mom said chuckling at my despair. We had been on the plane for hours now..

"Easy for you to say." I shot back playfully with a chuckle of my own. "You were asleep for pretty much the whole time!" Mom rolled her eyes with a smile.

"You ready for the safari, Son?" My Dad asked me.

"You kidding? I've been waiting for this for a long time!" I said with evident excitement. I look over at my sister, who was sitting right next to me in the window seat. She had hardly said a word the whole trip, but I could see she was freaked out. I laughed already knowing what it was and I said,

"What? Can't handle a little plane ride?" My sister slugged me a good one in the arm in response. "Ow! Okay, okay fine. I'm sorry." She was 14 years old, so of course she was going to be moody..

"You know how much I hate flying! I swear, I can't wait until we're just on the ground." My sister said.

"Yeah. I'm sick of being crammed in here. I just wanna see the animals." I agreed. Not many words were exchanged after that. I simply looked out the window and took in the view. There wasn't much to look at really: they were just fucking clouds! But honestly what else was there to do on here?

All of a sudden, the clouds I was looking at looked as if they were rising at an alarming rate! I felt a pressure on my chest almost as if we were on a roller coaster. I knew right then that something was wrong. The air masks all came down and the intercom beeped.

'Oh fuck!' I thought in fear.

"This is your Captain speaking.." I could hear the shakiness in his voice. "We're going down! Put on your air masks and brace for impact!" I did as I was told, and looked to see if my sister had done the same. She hadn't.

'Oh you've gotta be fucking kidding me, Sis..'

I took off my mask and got her attention. She looked like she was having a panic attack. She was sweating profusely and screaming in absolute fear.

"You gotta snap out of it! Here, put on your mask!" I tried to assist her in putting on her air mask to help with the high air pressure, but it was then I saw that the plane was descending at a frightening speed!

I froze..

There was no way I was gonna make it in time. Right then and there, I closed my eyes and I embraced death.

'Goodbye Mom. Goodbye Dad. Goodbye Sis.. I love you all..'

After that, all the noise stopped and all I could see was white..

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My eyes slowly started to open, and I began to take in my surroundings. I thought for sure I was dead, but the weird thing was: I sure didn't feel like I was.. I still felt some bit of pain, though it was very minor. What got me to my feet was the sight of my motionless sister laying beside me.

"Sis!?" I asked in a panic. "Sis, wake up!" I saw her start to stir, and I sighed in utmost relief. Thank God she was still alive! Her eyes started to open, and she too started to look around some. "You're okay." I hugged her. She returned the embrace.

"W- Where are we?" She asked me. "Where's Mom and Dad?" Good question. I looked around at the environment: healthy, green grasslands as far as the eye can see. I saw a few zebra grazing nearby, though they couldn't see me. All in all it looked pretty beautiful. It looked about early morning, as the sun was only just now beginning to rise. I didn't see a plane or any parts of one anywhere now that I thought about it. Odd…

Why did we just wake up on the ground? That's not right! We should both have been on that plane if anything! Just what on earth is happening? How did we get here? Where is Mom and Dad!? I snapped out of my thoughts and noticed I still hadn't answered my sister's question. I sighed and answered,

"I don't know, Sis.. I'm honestly trying to figure that out for myself.. I'm worried about Mom and Dad." She nodded, sharing my worry. No matter how fucking weird this all seems right now, we weren't exactly safe where we were currently at. We had to find civilization or some kind of help if we wanted to survive!

"We gotta try and find some help.." I told her. "We're sitting ducks out here and won't last long without it. We'll figure this all out later." She nodded once again in agreement and she replied,

"Let's go then. The faster we act, the bigger the chance we survive." I had to smile at that. Sure she was 14, and was by no means a little kid. But still, for her age she was very smart and is reacting pretty well in this situation.

So that's what we did. For hours upon hours, we walked through the green savanna, taking breaks when necessary. Our stomachs growled often, and we were both hungry. It had been awhile since we ate. All I had for a weapon if we had to resort to hunting an animal was a 6 inch hunting knife my Dad gave me a couple years back when I gutted my first deer. Not the best weapon for killing an animal, but it'd still work I suppose.. How I got this past airport security, I will never know..

We soon came upon a massive and seemingly barren desert. I thought it to be suicide to head into there, but perhaps there was a desert civilization nearby. It was a risk I had to take.. After about another hour or so, I regretted that decision.. It was well over 100 degrees and I felt like I was gonna die! My sister wasn't any better. We were both sweating waterfalls it was so hot.. We didn't have much water left, and the heat was gonna kill us if we didn't find something soon..

Present Time

"Hey. Did you hear what I said?" My sister asked me, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Where are we gonna go?.. W- We'll die out here in this heat if we don't find help soon.."

"I- I know, Sis.. I'm trying my best, I really am." I replied.

'God I hope we survive this..' I thought with fear and doubt.

We continued the exhausting and life draining trek through this seemingly barren wasteland. I was just about ready to lose it! This is pure torture! Why couldn't there just be somebody right nearby so that we could leave? As I continued to mentally complain, there was a sudden noise.. Almost like a growl..

"Get behind me!" I said to my sister as I drew my hunting knife. I could already tell this was gonna be fun.. It stalked closer towards us as I got into a combat stance. I was prepared to kill this thing however I could. If I'm being completely honest though: I'm scared as fuck by this thing! It could rip your ass to shreds if it wanted to! But, it's either it or us..

The bloodthirsty creature now circled us, still growling.. I made sure I kept my sister behind me and away from the beast. After what felt like forever, my fears actually came true: it charged towards us! The adrenaline rush was, to say the least, absolutely insane! It felt almost like slow motion, yet it wasn't.

I waited for an opportune time to strike and I swung my knife in two slashing motions, barely knicking the beast, and leaving two small cuts down its side. It fell to the ground, not in pain, but in surprise. It shook its head and quickly rose once more. It gave us a vicious roar which caused us both to flinch. I was freaking out! My heart was literally pounding out of my chest! What's worse is that it had started charging again..

"Watch out!" My sister yelled in fear for both of our lives. But I was too late.. My reaction wasn't quick enough. I tried another slash but I couldn't get enough momentum. The beast pounced on me and had me on the ground, pinned!

"Brother!" My sister cried.

I tried to block its attacks, but its teeth literally carved into my shoulder like a knife into a rare steak. I was literally lost.. I didn't know what to do! It would be a miracle if I survived this..

Then a gunshot rang out.

The beast fell limp, whimpering slightly as it collapsed.

Jack's POV

I rushed forward, and with all my might, I tried to push the beast's body from the newcomer it had pinned.

After at least twelve seconds, I managed to roll it onto its side, freeing a teenager almost the same age as me.

I offered him my shaking hand. I still couldn't believe what had happened. I also noticed his blood soaked shoulder.

"Here." I said quickly. I took out a sterilized rag, and gently began to wipe the blood and dirt from his shoulder, trying to stop any infections.

"AGH, fuck!" He shouted in pain from the rag on the wound.

After cleaning the wound, I wrapped the rag tightly around his shoulder as a tourniquet.

"You okay?" I asked quietly.

"I- I'm fine.." the stranger replied. "Who are you? Where are we? What was that thing!? What the fuck is going on here?"

I sighed. "I have no idea. I just got here yesterday. I didn't even know I'd find anyone else here."

I bit my lip. "God damn bastard almost killed me yesterday. This place is one hell of a harsh area."

He managed to finally stand to his feet, as did the other newcomer, and he looked down at the ground shaking his head almost as if he was in thought.

"Shit, man.. I'm sorry. I'm just really confused is all. Me and my sister here were on a plane with our parents going to Tanzania for a safari for my 18th birthday. Then all a sudden the plane started to go down and- and then we just woke up here! We've been walking for hours now! We have no idea where we are, where our parents went, or where to go!"

I nodded in understanding. "Come on, I can get you guys food and water. Though I haven't seen anyone else since I got here. I-"

I stopped. "Nevermind. Can you walk?" He nodded.

"Yes, I can manage. Thank you so much! We'll owe you one for sure, man!"

I smiled and nodded. "You got a name?" He smiled back.

"Drew." He said, extending his hand. "Drew King."

I nodded. "Name's Jack Anderson. Pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise." He replied. I shook his hand.

I turned to his sister.

"Mackenzie." She introduced herself. "But I go by 'Kenzi'."

"Nice to meet you 'Kenzi." I replied.

"Same here." She said with a smile. "Thank you by the way."

I smiled and nodded.

I turned serious.

"Come on, we should get going. It's not safe out here." They nodded in understanding and relief.

"Ya don't gotta tell me twice! Come on, Kenzi." Drew said. From there, we started back for the base.

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"This device right here saved my life. I call it a replicator. Think of it like a video game crafting system almost. You can build and design your own items, but only if you have resources of a certain type. Don't ask me how it works, because I don't have any idea either."

I walked to the small fence surrounding my own little slice of nowhere. I opened the gate, and we entered the base.

I whistled.

Whitetip and Emma (one of the twins) walked into view. Whitetip cocked her head in interest at the two newcomers, while Emma did so, though with less curiosity and more caution.

"Yes, they're Velociraptors, though they're mostly friendly." I said. Drew chuckled.

"I'll keep that in mind." He reached his hand out to Emma to pet her, while Kenzi did the same to Whitetip.

"Hey Velociraptor. How's it going?" As soon as he touched her, she jumped back a bit with a hiss. Drew jerked his hand back. Meanwhile Whitetip was purring as Kenzi petted her with glee. Drew huffed in annoyance and muttered,

"Hmph, just got lucky.." I just had to laugh at that.

I sighed. "Whitetip's the only one who's really that friendly. The other three are still getting used to humans." Drew looked back at Emma, still looking cautious.

"I can see that." He replied.

I then blinked in surprise to see Bluebrow was now sniffing Drew's hand.

Then the young male made a purring sound, before looking up at Drew.

"Wow, Bluebrow still won't let me pet him." I commented. Drew smiled as Bluebrow had let him pet him. With a smirk, he replied,

"He's got good taste. I like him already!"

I rolled my eyes in response.

"Good for you."

Then I remembered something. "Here, let me get you guys something to eat. Got any preference?" Kenzi looked relieved and immediately gave me her answer.

"Yes! I would literally kill for some Lasagna right now.." I looked over at Drew, and he said,

"You can never go wrong with a medium rare steak, man." Kenzi then cocked a brow of remembrance and curiosity.

"I forgot, you can't exactly get that out here, can you?"

I chuckled. "I can make something similar. Trust me, with this replicator, as long as you have the resources, you can get what you need."

I motioned for them to follow me.

We entered my humble abode. A couch, television and carpet were on the right side of a large room, while a large circular device, the Omnicooker as I called it, waited on the left. I programmed in some code, and it began to cook.

"As long as we have at least one of each ingredient, we can make limitless amounts of food." I said, before stopping.

"It will be ready in about five minutes, you guys can watch any of the thousands of movies on that TV."

"Are you sure we aren't dead? And are like, in Heaven or something? This is insane! It's incredible.." Drew commented.

I sighed. "It's not all peaches and cream. We still need a good supply of water, and the local watering hole is usually full of carnivores. We can only go at dusk or dawn."

I sighed. "But we have enough for a little while at least."

But then I remembered. "As far as I can tell though, we can't find our way back. I've tried to make something to get home using the replicator, and it won't let me." Drew and Kenzi both hung their heads down in sadness and disappointment.

"Mom.. Dad.." Kenzi muttered. She began to tear up, and Drew held her in an embrace.

"I know, Kenzi.. I know.." Drew was tearing up as well, but seemed to try and hide it. He decided to change the subject. "So.. you say there's a predator problem at the watering hole, right? And that's disrupting the amount of water you get?"

I nodded. "Yes. At least four different types. Though one..."

I stopped, I heard an alarm going off. It was a proximity alert that would let me know if an animal was within a certain distance of the fence.

I readied my rifle, and began to walk out.

"Wait!" Drew called out. Kenzi started to follow, but I said, "Stay inside! No telling what's out there. I don't want you getting hurt." Kenzi looked hesitant but nodded in agreement.

I walked outside, Drew following. I rushed to the fence, and looked through the gap. I held my rifle, before stopping.

"Its...okay, they're not hunting us at least."

I pointed out.

Of all the predators here, I had finally seen the big one. Two forty foot long Carcharodontosaurs were on the hunt. A herd of long-necked Saltasaurus were migrating towards the watering hole, and the giant predators were about to attack.

They stepped over the hill, and began to march down.

"Son of a bitch.. I'm guessing this is one of many predators that we'll have to deal with in this world?"

I nodded.

"I've seen them only at a distance."

The two giants continued to walk briskly down. It seemed they knew they could strike at will.

The two living tanks finally began to accelerate towards the herd, slowly but surely picking up speed.

Then, they picked their target. They rushed forward at a small and frail looking Saltasaur, before finally lunging forward.

One of the two bit into the neck of the sauropod, and with a single bite, snapped it. The ten ton herbivore collapsed to the ground, limp.

The two giant predators then dug in, seemingly content to focus on their large kill rather then attacking us.

I sighed. "Jeez."

"Okayy, I'm officially freaked out.." Drew said. "What if they come after us? Do we kill them?"

I looked down. "I honestly..."

Then I stopped. I could see the larger of the two, a golden colored male with scars on his face, turn to face us.

I froze.

The giant predator began to take a few steps forward, each step shaking the Earth. I raised my gun, though I hesitated. The manner with which he was walking, the caution, the curiosity, the prudent chuffing all suggested that he was more...curious than anything.

Then I saw something else that surprised me. Stepping up over the hill were three other dinosaurs… They resembled a greatly, with the same basic body plan and tiny arms, but were smaller, just thirty feet long.

The female Carcharodontosaur turned and chuffed at the smaller Tyrannosaurs (Daspletosaurus I believe was the exact species). They walked forward, and after hesitating a bit, they began to eat. The female Carcharodontosaur did the same, allowing them to eat in perfect harmony.

I was speechless. Was this some type of symbiotic relationship or alliance between two completely different species?! Or was it some freak coincidence?

I leaned towards the first for some reason.

"Umm.." Drew began. "Is it just me, or did I expect the bigger one to kill the smaller ones by now? I mean, that doesn't just happen, right?"

I nodded in agreement. "Yes. Most animals don't tolerate even their own species around their kills. Even those that do often clash, like Lions in Africa. This...peace is not normal."

The golden colored male continued, before finally stopping just fifteen feet away from the fence. It was then that I realized that this measly little barrier was useless. If he wanted to, he could break through with ease.

Then why isn't he?

Finally, the male lowered his head, and sniffed at us.

"Jack?.." Drew whispered, not removing eye contact from the beast and standing perfectly still.

"Yeah?" I asked with the same nervous tone.

The Carcharodontosaurus stood still, but looked at us, as if waiting for us to make the first move.

"You ever seen Jurassic Park?" Drew asked.

"Yeah?" I replied.

"Is it true what they say about T-Rexes? Does it apply to similar species as well?"

I shook my head. "They had binocular vision like eagles. In fact, most large carnivores, or carnivores in general need good eyesight to hunt their prey. He can see us as well as we can see him."

"Fuck.." Drew whisper-yelled, his fear growing by the second.

The beast's whole demeanour was one of cautious inquisitiveness, as if…

I suddenly had an epiphany. I gestured to myself, and said. "Jack."

The Carcharodontosaurus cocked its head to the side, before growling softly at us, as if it was trying to respond. "Jack." I repeated, gesturing to myself, and then to Drew. "Drew."

The creature looked at us, before growling first at me, then in a slightly different pitch to Drew.

I blinked. Unless this was just my imagination, it seemed to be identifying us as individuals, not as just more prey items.

"Should we- should we shoot it?" Drew asked, not quite seeing what I was.

I shook my head. "He's not showing any signs of aggression. He..."

I stopped. "Get a piece of meat from the house! We need to prove that we're not just more potential prey items. He's sizing us up, trying to figure out what exactly we are."

Drew sighed. "Alright, Jack. But if he bites my arm off, that's on you." Drew went post-haste back into the house, though not too fast, to retrieve the piece of meat.

The Carcharodontosaurus had taken another step, so close now that if I reached through the gaps in the fence, I could touch his snout.

I hesitated.

The giant creature stopped, and looked directly at me. He sniffed again, before chuffing at me...in the same way his mate had chuffed at the Daspletosaurus.

I froze. That call seemed to be a friendly greeting, or at least a diplomatic affirmation.

I took a deep breath, and reached my hand forward.

Seconds felt like an eternity, before the palm of my hand made contact with his snout. It was leathery, not slimy like many people thought reptile skin was, and…

Then I realized that he hadn't bitten my arm off!

I began to laugh, cursing the sheer stupidity of this move, but also cheering the fact that it hadn't ended in abject disaster.

The Carcharodontosaur growled at me again, before he turned to return to his pack. By this point, I had noticed two young Carcharodontosaurs and three young Daspletosaurs had joined the adults at the carcass.

I guess it was a sort of symbiotic relationship. The larger Carcharodontosaurus might lay in wait for the smaller and faster Daspletosaurus to chase prey towards an ambush. At least, that was my theory. Still, it made the most sense.

I began to laugh again, this time in joy.

"Remind me not to do something that stupid again. I only have two arms, and I shouldn't push my luck." I said sarcastically. I then heard the sound of something plopping on the ground. I turned to see and I saw that it was a piece of meat. Drew stood there with a stunned look on his face.

"Honestly dude, you could be a stuntman or something. That was crazy!" He then started to chuckle. "I think I have a nickname for you now."

I blinked in amusement. "Oh?"

"'Dino-Whisperer'. Seriously, how many dinosaurs have you been on friendly terms with? I wouldn't have even tried what you did. Though I'm kinda glad you did.. That one raptor is pretty cool." He laughed.

I laughed. "Thanks man. I honestly think that most carnivorous dinosaurs here, at least the ones that encountered, are naturally more docile then expected, perhaps due to intelligence, perhaps something else. I don't know. All I know is that they don't seem to view humans as prey."

"It appears that way." Drew said. "But what of the predators like the one we encountered when we first met? Are those ones not the same?"

"I think it's just a matter of which species prefer which prey combined with their relative intelligence or natural behavior. I honestly don't know yet. Though I do want to study the different animals here and actually see which ones behave which way."

I grinned. "My grandfather was a zoologist. He loved animals. I guess I got that from him."

Drew shot me a grin of his own.

"No shit? My father was a zoologist himself! Well, technically my stepfather, but he's practically raised as his own.. That's actually one of the reasons I chose a safari for my 18th birthday. I wanted to learn about animals just as he did, though he mostly studied those from Australia and Africa."

I grinned. "I've always loved those types of animals. Lions were, are my favorite."

I turned back to the pack. They had finished their meal, and were moving on. I got an idea.

"Tomorrow, I'd like to head out and go study some of the animals. Want to come with?" Drew smiled.

"Absolutely. My sis is just as interested in learning as I am. Can she come with?"

"Of course." I replied with a smile.

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Drew's POV

It was early morning in these beautiful, green lands, and the sun had just barely peaked in the sky. Me, Kenzi, and Jack were just about to head out on that expedition he was talking about. Needless to say, my sister was pretty damn excited. She woke me up before the sun even came up. Not that I necessarily liked that..

"So what first, Jack?" Kenzi asked with enthusiasm as we walked out into the open savannah.

Jack pointed to a large, flat plain a little ways from the dry grass covered dunes surrounding us. "That area over there. It's a good area for the grazing animals, so it has the best chance of attracting predators."

He pulled up a pair of binoculars, and grinned. "Perfect. We already have one hunting there. I think its..." He stopped.

"An Arrowtongue. Like the Carcharodontosaurus, not very aggressive to smaller prey. It prefers large food."

He strapped his rifle to his shoulder, and began to walk forward. "Everyone bring enough water?" I nodded and took out two bottles of water: one for me, and one for Kenzi.

"Yup." I replied.

Jack grinned, and nodded. "Alright, let's head out."

We began to head out towards the valley.

When we got there, we finally spotted the creature Jack had mentioned. It was large, with black leathery skin, two large spikes jutting from its back, and a spade shaped head with no noticeable eyes.

"Not quite the expedition I was expecting.." Kenzi commented eyes widening at the creature. "Wish we could find some zebra or antelope or something."

Jack then gestured to a small herd nearby. "See those? Recognize them? They're Sable Antelope from Africa."

"Oh yeah." Kenzi said with a smile. "I see them. That's really cool."

Jack nodded. "Antelopes and other hoofed animals are common here. They just happen to share this place with a lot of other animals."

Case in point, another large animal stepped into view towards a small watering hole. It was a Bison from the prairies of North America! Kenzi cocked a brow in confusion.

"What is a Bison doing in Africa? We are in Africa, right?" She paused. "Then again there are dinosaurs and aliens here too. I really shouldn't be surprised." She said with a laugh.

Jack stopped. "As far as I can tell, while the environment is superficially similar to that of East Africa, I don't really think we're even on Earth anymore."

He sighed. "I do miss it. And this heat does annoy the crap out of me." I sighed as well.

"I agree.. Who knows where Mom and Dad are, or even if they're still alive.." I looked down at the ground in sadness, and Kenzi began to tear up again. "Yeah, I miss it alright.."

Jack nodded in agreement. He seemed just as sad as us.

Then, in the distance, we heard a loud roar.

Jack turned. "I haven't heard that kind of animal before-"

"Leave us alone!"

We froze. Did we just hear someone speak?! Was there another person here?!

Jack immediately began running in the direction the voice came from, which was filled with roaring and the sounds of another type of animal we hadn't heard before.

Jack suddenly stopped at the top of the hill.

"Guys...its a Lion. And..." Jack began.

"Get away from my Kovu!" The same voice roared.

Then, Jack rushed down the hill. We could hear the sound of his rifle firing in the distance, before he cried out in horror. "NO! Get away from her!"

More gunshots followed, then there was silence.

Seconds past, and we could hear some murmuring, before, after a good few minutes, Jack finally walked up over the hill, carrying two tiny forms.

"What happened?" I asked with concern.

Jack stopped. I could see two tiny lion cubs in his hands. They couldn't have been more than a few days old.

"A lioness was defending her cubs from a new predator, one that I haven't seen before. It killed her. I avenged her. She left behind two cubs." I looked down and the ground, grasping the severity and horror of the situation.

"Jesus…" I muttered.

"What are we gonna do?" Kenzi asked, sharing my concern. "We can't just leave them all alone.."

Jack sighed. "We're going to take care of them."

He looked down at them.

He looked up. "What worries me is the fact that that pack of creatures was able to take down a full grown lioness."

"What did those new predators look like? You haven't seen anything like them before?" Kenzi asked.

Jack nodded in response. "Skinny, six-legged, with a narrow, viper-like head and a long tail. Tan coloring, with a few...antennae I guess, where ears would be."

"At least eight of them. The gunshots scared them off." We nodded in response, and I then looked back at the cubs in Jack's hands. They were so little. I looked at the one in his left hand. It was golden brown color and for some reason she just stuck out to me..

"May I?" I asked.

Jack nodded. He gently handed me the little golden brown cub. He then held the other, chocolate furred male cub to his chest, stroking him gently. I couldn't help but smile and do the same. The little cub was so helpless. For some reason, these thoughts just immediately started surging to my head: almost like an instinct. I felt like I had to do whatever it takes to protect and raise this cub the best I could. While I was thinking this through, my sister seemed to have taken a liking to the cub in my hands as well. She petted it with a smile.

"Jack? Did their mother say what their names were?" Kenzi asked.

Jack stopped. "She said the male's name was Kovu, but didn't say the female's."

"Ooh! Oh! I'll name her!" Kenzi shouted with glee. "Lauren!" I squinted my eyes at her like she was crazy.

"Uhh, no.." I rejected.

"Hmph, fine.." Kenzi said, annoyed. "I'd love to see you come up with something better."

"Well," I started. "in the Swahilian language, there are many words I could name her that would be fitting.." I smiled as I looked at her. "But I think the one that'd make the most sense would be, 'Adia'. It means 'gift'.." Kenzi smiled.

"Not bad, big brother.. Adia it is."

Jack grinned. "A perfect name."

There was a sudden roar in the distance. Another creature Jack didn't seem to recognize, as he immediately tensed up. "I vote we head back to base. Its not safe out here."

A/N: This is a very special chapter. I hope you guys like the fact that LionKingIsAwesome has joined the team behind this story! We're excited to bring you this chapter, and can't wait to write many, many more.

Message from LionKingIsAwesome: Hey guys! I'm glad to say that I'm finally starting to get back into writing! :) I may have abandoned my old series, 'The Human Pridelander', but I'm more than happy to reuse my characters here to hopefully make something even more special, as well as different. It'll give me some more experience in writing again, and before y'all know it, I'll be back writing my own stories in no time! Who knows, maybe I will try my hand in a human in Lion King story again of my own.. ;) Ya never know.. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Thank y'all for the continued support! God bless!