Chapter 2: Twist of Fate

'So, what exactly are we looking for?' Mendel Craven asked, sticking close to Nick and Elsie as they trekked along a barely visible trail. The cries of birds and animals surrounded them, echoing through the gloom that had accumulated beneath the canopy. Nick looked back at Mendel for a moment before focusing on Jess, Randy and Monique further up the trail. Jess was tormenting Randy, running ahead while Monique hung back , watching them.

'From the reports we've received, the villages were attacked by some kind of bird.' Elsie explained before turning to Nick. 'Do you think that it could be Quetzalcoatl?'

'Impossible,' Nick said. 'The amount of rock and lava that Godzilla dropped on him should have trapped him forever.'

'Then could it have been one of the chicks? One could have escaped.'

'I'm not sure.'

'It's improbable that any of those little monsters survived. Even if they did live through the destruction of their nest, they would have likely starved to death, unless they–'

'Yeah,' Elsie interrupted, 'We get the idea, Mendel.'

Mendel shut his mouth, looking at Elsie with a look similar to a 'kicked-puppy'. Shuffling back, he walked along side N.I.G.E.L., checking to make sure that the grunge-face punk hadn't meddled with the robots system again.


Jess looked back at Nick, Elsie and Mendel briefly before darting away from randy. Tucked securely under one arm was randy's beloved laptop which she had managed to swipe from him on the H.E.A.T Seeker just before they had landed. From what she could tell, they had landed pretty close to the last attack sight, but to get to the village, they had to go through the jungle. All well, all the more chances to annoy the team's hacker.

'Jess! Give me back my laptop!' Randy shouted, getting quite close to snagging his laptop back from the troublesome teen.

Jess leapt away, dodging to the left. 'Not a chance, slow-poke,' she called back over her shoulder.

They kept up their game for a while longer, before Jess tripped over an exposed root. Girl and laptop went flying; of which Randy managed to catch his precious equipment. Jess tumbled to the ground, rolled over several times before getting to her feet. Randy was hugging his laptop to him, glaring at her all the while.

Jess sighed dramatically. 'Oh, well. That was fun while it lasted.'

'What do you mean "fun"?' Randy demanded.

Monique came up between the two of them. 'Enough. You are both acting like spoilt children–'

'I've got an excuse,' Jess claimed.

Glaring at the girl for a moment, Monique continued, 'Start acting your age, and behave.'

The French spy pushed past the two of them, leaving the two teenagers staring after her. Looking at each other, Randy finally shrugged before moving on. Jess stood there for a moment, letting them get a bit further out in front before continuing on.

'Causing trouble again?' nick asked, coming up alongside his niece.

Jess glanced sideways at him. 'No. Just stirring the pot.'

'Well don't stir it too much.'


They had been walking for almost an hour. Jess was back out at the front with Randy, this time talking about pranks that they could pull on Mendel. Neither were really watching were they were going. If they had, they most likely would have seen the up-rise root in the middle of the trail.

As it was, they didn't.

Jess barely registered the fact that something was caught around her foot before she went tumbling down the embankment that the team had been traversing. All that escaped her mouth was a small squeak as she hit the bottom, sending her sprawling out into a clearing.

Her mind was all fuzzy. Jess blinked her eyes several times, trying to clear her vision. All she could see was a vast expanse of red...

Oh shit.

Some instinct inside her caused Jess to side, just in time. A large beak ploughed into the earth right where she had been. Jess scrambled back a way staring up at the creature. The beak pulled free of the ground, rising high above her head, opened and a piercing shriek filled the air. Jess scrambled back further, aware of the fact that the team was coming down the embankment behind her. But she was focused on the creature in front of her.

A slim, dusty red body towered over her. Golden scales protected its underbelly, while the reds turned to a darker brown towards edges. Huge plains swept out on both sides of the creature; it took Jess a moment to realise that they were wings, tipped with deadly claws. A huge beak and crest rested at the top of thick, strong neck, and fierce blue eyes narrowed as they focused on her. Jess's mind tingled. In such a close proximity to the beast, she couldn't stop her mind from connecting with the creatures.

It was a swirling mass of pure instinct and primal power. Jess mind flailed, trying as hard as she could to surface above all that primal emotions. She couldn't even feel the link between her and Godzilla. She was trapped, and if she didn't get free soon, she was going to end up dead. Pain ricocheted through her body, her mind screaming to be released. Muscles locked up, leaving Jess un able to move.

.: What are you?

Even if Jess had wanted to, she wouldn't have been able to answer. She managed to open her eyes, only to be met with fierce blue ones that narrowed even further.

.: What. Are. You?

Again, when she didn't answer, pain ripped its way through her spine. She had the vague impression of the creature moving above her. She could barely register the fact that the beast's beak was coming down again.

This was it...

Hands wrapped themselves under her armpits, pulling her clear as the beak once again crashed into the ground. Jess looked up as Randy and Nick pulled her clear. Monique was shooting at the beast while Mendel held back, cowering behind a tree.

'Jess!' Nick yelled over the sounds of gun fire and the creatures roars. 'Are you alright?'

Jess just managed to nod.

The gun fire ceased, the sounds of clicking filled the air. The rest of H.E.A.T. stared in panic as Monique's gun clicked on empty. Jess didn't register any of it. The beast's mind still had a firm grip on hers. All she could was watch as that beak came down again. Third time lucky.

.: LEAVE SISTER AND FATHER ALONE!


Oh, cliffhanger already! Wonder what's going to happen. Keep reading to find out!

LOL! =)

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