Sorry that it took so long to upload this guys. It's just that Glarn said some bad things about my work and series and I took it personally. I deleted the comment because it made me feel bad, so don't go looking for it. I've just been kinda bummed because of Glarn's comment. So… merry Christmas. Happy holidays to all of you guys (except Glarn). Bye.
There is something missing from our world. The amazing animals that time has left behind. But what if we could bring them back? What if extinction didn't have to be forever? We're going back on a safari with a difference as wildlife adventurer Nigel Marven plunges into prehistory to rescue creatures on the brink of extinction. His plan is to bring them back to the safety of the present and give them a second chance.
This time, Nigel and Chiyo are returning back to ancient Egypt to save a mate for Apophis the Gigantophis, but searching for mates for Seymour, the Seymouria, Lizardlips, the Sphenacodon, and Lamia, the Megalodon.
Welcome to the ultimate wildlife sanctuary. Welcome to Prehistoric Park.
Chapter Three- Lost Loves of the Past Part 3
At Prehistoric Park, mating season has hit the islands. Most of the animals are continuing life on as normal. Other species are getting more territorial to create room for potential mates. Several of the animals have gone above and beyond, with the Ankylosaurus and Arsinoitherium, chasing out other species that they live with from their chosen territories. However, there are still some animals without mates. And after today, the animals at Prehistoric Park will never be lonely again.
Nigel and Chiyo sat in front of a glassed off exhibit in the Carboniferous House. The inside had green, murky water and small Lepidodendron growing out of the water. Algae grew on the bottom and logs provided hiding for the animals inside if they wanted privacy. A bell ring from a walkway above and a keeper threw in sixteen dead fish in to feed the inhabitants. A moment later, five shapes came from all around the enclosure and snapped at the fish.
The creatures were Crassigyrinus, a caiman-like amphibian that would have eaten the fish, Meganeura, and Pulmonoscorpius of the Carboniferous period swamps of Scotland. One bit a fish in half before another snapped on whole.
"I remember when Scott attacked me the first time" Nigel said. "We were in the Carboniferous looking for giant bugs when Scotty attempted to attack me. We couldn't rescue him the first time, but then we saved him on a Lost But Not Forgotten mission. We rescued four new Dromornis for Daffy, our first Dromornis. Today, we're going to be rescuing mates for Lizardlips, Seymour, and Lamia. I always forget about Seymour, because he's such a small animal. But at any rate, even he doesn't deserve to be the last of his kind."
"We're going to be returning to the same area where we originally found Lizardlips, but going two hundred miles South of where we found Lamia and Manny, the juvenile Megalodon male" Chiyo said to the cameraman next to her. "We're hoping that maybe we can find more than one Megalodon to increase genetic diversity within the animals here. We haven't told Bob yet. Mary built the enclosure instead, while Bob was working on the Tricera-Tractor. Just wait until Bob sees the new sharks we bring back."
Chiyo smiled and Nigel gave out a chuckle, imagining the surprise Bob would have. He had nearly had a heart attack at seeing the Squalicorax. He hadn't even been told that Nigel and Chiyo were going to rescue more Megalodon.
Together, Nigel and Chiyo walked out of the from the Carboniferous House, passing the Meganeura aviary, Lepidodendron nursery, and Meganeura Nymph area. Each giant griffonfly nymph rested in it's own jar, eating minnows that had been provided for them. Nigel's radio suddenly blared to life, scaring the nearby Hylonomus from their logs.
"Nigel" Bob said on the other side of the radio. "I just finished the Tricero-Tractor for Theo. I'm going to park it next to Cronus's exhibit so Theo doesn't see it and break through the fence to try and get to it."
"That's fine Bob" Nigel said. "Just make sure Nick doesn't see or hear about it. Otherwise, he might do something stupid."
Chiyo nodded seriously before a Meganeura that was flying particularly low forced her to duck. Only three Meganeura that hadn't mated yet hadn't died. They would live on until they either reached six years of age or mated. Three females had not mated this year, meaning that they would live longer than the rest of their enclosure partners.
"So, where are we going first?" Chiyo asked Nigel.
"To the coast of Miocene Peru" Nigel said cheerfully. "I personally hope that we can find some Odobenocetops and rescue them. They're actually a relative to the narwhals, so I think they would be excellent additions to Prehistoric Park."
The two humans walked outside the Carboniferous House to find Phil running around while Suzanne chased after him. A worker clung to his neck, riding him like a horse or a carnivorous ostrich on steroids. Phil paid no mind to the worker, as he continued to run away from Suzanne and towards Morrison Formation. Nigel laughed at the sight before Chiyo talked.
"At least we'll never get an animal more troublesome than Phil, Theo, or Cronus (cough, Python, cough)" Chiyo said, watching Suzanne disappear down the path.
As Suzanne is preoccupied by Phil, Nigel and Chiyo by Lamia and Lizardlips, and Bob by Theo, Nick is doing his usual antics, after hearing "don't let Nick see or hear about it". And it looks like someone large, angry, and with big teeth is going to get his revenge.
Nick was messing around in Hell Creek Formation, occasionally stopping to text on his phone. After he heard Nigel ask Bob to keep Nick away from the Tricera-Tractor, Nick had decided that it needed some "field testing".
Nick found the bamboo horned, tire frilled tractor easily enough. It sat next to the gate of some enclosure. Nick didn't bother reading the sign to see what was inside the enclosure as he opened the gate and drove the Tricera-Tractor through before closing it and driving along the edge of the clearing where the animals inside could be viewed.
"This is awesome" Nick said to himself. "Triceratops fighting! Alright! Maybe this can be an attraction. This is going to be so awesome!"
It was so not awesome. As soon as he finished his sentence, he ran over the tail of an animal sticking out of the underbrush. A surprised gurgle was made before the tail retreated into the bushes, leaving behind a black feather.
Nick paled. He only knew of one black feathered species in Hell Creek Formation. Slowly, the head of an angry Cronus raised out from the trees, looking down at Nick with anger and hunger in his eyes. Nick slowly started to back away slowly with the Tricera-Tractor before remotely opening the gates out of the paddock. Then, as quickly as possible, he turned the Tricera-Tractor around and sped off towards the gate. Cronus let loose an angry roar, shaking the very earth he stood on, before giving chase to the fleeing prey that resembled the horned ones he had hunted so often before being rescued.
"AHHHHHH" Nick screamed as Cronus nearly took his head off his shoulders. "Please don't eat me Carter or Cupcake or whatever your name is!"
Cronus roared angrily and continued to give chase. He did not like being compared to festive desserts. The gates were fully open now and Bob was on the other side, his arms crossed and glaring at Nick with his best angry gaze.
"Hmmmm" Nick thought to himself. "Seeing Bob stare daggers at me, it might be better to just jump off and let the crow on steroids get me."
After a brief argument with himself, he decided to take his chances with Bob. At least he didn't have to worry about foot long teeth biting into his body from Bob.
After several more seconds, Bob started closing the gates. At this, Nick panicked and drove faster than before, just barely making it out of the Tyrannosaurus enclosure in time. As soon as the gates closed, Cronus bashed his head into them in frustration before giving a growl of defeat. Beaten, the Tyrannosaurus lumbered back into the forest, disappearing from view.
Bob turned to Nick before talking angrily.
"So? Have anything to say for yourself?"
"Yes" Nick replied. "Can we make that an attraction?"
At the Sornan aquatic pens, Nigel and Chiyo have gotten Hussein to, once more, help them rescue animals as mates for older park residents that have been alone too long. First, they are going to Miocene Peru to rescue the greatest sharks ever to live. And because of that, they have brought secret weapons to help them catch both the juveniles and adults and even record their lives in the wild oceans of the prehistoric past.
Nigel was walking up into the Ichthyosaur in a diver's suit and a harpoon with a small mini-sub looking device attached to it. It was the Remora (Researching the Environments of Megalodon in Oceanic Range Areas) drone. It was was made to be attached to the fin of an adult Megalodon that was to be attracted by chum. Inside was a small time portal for when Nigel desired to bring the Megalodon back.
Nigel smiled at the cameraman before he held up the Remora for them to see.
"Chiyo and I are going to split up" he said, smiling. "She wants to go after a juvenile since they're slightly less dangerous than the adults. While Hussein and I go out into the open ocean on the Ichthyosaur, Chiyo's going by inflatable speed boat along the shoreline. Hopefully, she'll bring back an Odobenocetops or two. We're going during the summer, which is when the juvenile Megalodon will be congregating in massive numbers along the shoreline to hunt the Odobenocetops. I'm going after the adults following the whale migrations."
Just then, Chiyo came along, dragging a paper mache Odobenocetops behind her. It was a pasty white with one tusk longer than the other. It was less than well built, but one could pass it off as an Odobenocetops if need be from a distance.
"Hi Nigel" Chiyo said as she dragged it along. "I made this paper mache Odobenocetops to see the exact method of how the juvenile Megalodon hunt in the wild. We normally have Lamia and Manny jump out of the water to attack cow carcasses that are rolled over the water. I thought that I could record a juvenile Megalodon attacking this fake Odobenocetops to try and create a more natural feeding method for the juvenile Megalodon. I've attached a camera to the bottom of the Odobenocetops, which I'm going to drag behind me on a rope, so we can see if juveniles go under their prey before propelling themselves upward like a modern great white."
"That's excellent Chiyo" Nigel said. "As you can probably tell by me taking the Ichthyosaur, I'm going out into the open ocean to find a mate for Lamia. Adult Megalodon will be following the whale migrations, so I thought that the best way to find a Megalodn would be to get a paddle and imitate an injured, thrashing whale."
Chiyo nodded before Hussein talked over the intercom to announce that all that wanted death via giant Miocene shark were advised to go abroad the boat. Nigel and Chiyo said bye before they splitted ways.
A minute later, after climbing aboard the Ichthyosaur, Nigel watched as the yacht disappeared into a flash of blue before they came to rest on a foggy ocean. A distance away, the coiffed coastline kissed the ocean and kelp forests grew along the surface and sea bottom. Seagulls cawed as they flew up and down the ocean sky.
In the distance, a small orange inflatable speedboat appeared from a flash of blue with Chiyo on. Chiyo quickly tied a rope onto the Odobenocetops dummy before she sped the inflatable boat off. The Odobenocetops dragged less than gracefully in the water behind the boat. Several of the gulls followed Chiyo, smelling the fish, squid, octopus, chum, and meat that she had as further enticement for the juvenile sharks.
"Welcome to the coastline of Miocene Peru" Nigel said happily as the speedboat disappeared in the fog. "Here, baleen whales, sperm whales, seals, other toothed whales, and smaller sharks are abundant along with other animals that called this ocean home. This is the best place to look for Megalodon, save perhaps Sharktooth Hill in California. If we're to find any Megs, it's going to be here."
Hussein lowered the giant chum ball into the water of the sea and the crew watched as the ocean turned red with fish blood. All there was to do now was wait.
At Prehistoric Park, Suzanne has caught up with Phil and cornered him next to one of the enclosures. However, it was the enclosure of a rather dangerous animal. Namely, the pair of Prehistoric Park's predatory fish, Hyneria.
Phil was backing away from Suzanne and into foot deep water. Suzanne was now slowly backing away from Phil to encourage him to come out of the water. How ever, the terror bird was in no mood to do so.
Once Phil was at the two foot deep part, Suzanne started to worry even more. Hyneria were known to beach themselves trying to get to prey on the shore. Ripples on the far side of the lake didn't help Suzanne's anxiety whatsoever.
When Phil reached four feet of water, the female Hyneria, Holly, attacked. She rushed towards him, on the surface of the water. Swirling white foam and bubbles came from the fast moving fish as she zeroed in on her target. Phil squawked in alarm before he took off towards the shoreline. Despite being just ten feet away from the shore, the predatory fish was still closing the distance between her and Phil.
"Hurry up Phil" Suzanne said as she loaded a special type of tranqulizer into her gun. This dart was made specially to penetrate most sauropod hide, giant crocodilian hide, and fish scales. The park has yet to make a dart that could penetrate ankylosaur armor and Saltasaurus hide.
Phil lunged forward as the teeth of Holly snapped down and a loud snap-crack was heard. Mud and water flew everywhere, blocking Suzanne's view of Molly, Phil, the lake, and everything else.
Several seconds later, the water and mud let the sweet kiss of gravity reclaim them and Suzanne could see again. Phil was next to her, his eyes wide with fear and shock, shaking like a leaf. His beak was open, but no sound came out.
Holly was sliding back into the deeper water, deeming the chase done and over with. The snap had come from her almost getting Phil, but snapping down on a branch jutting out from a log that was on it's side.
Suzanne looked over herself, covered in mud but okay. Then she examined Phil. He had a small cut on his leg, but it wasn't anything life threatening. Phil quickly caught her gaze before running away from Hyneria Estuary, squawking in terror as he sprinted back to his safe enclosure with his mate and his new enclosure partners on Santa Cruz Plains. The terror birds of Isla Nublar had quickly learned never to go in water four feet deep outside of their enclosure.
Back in Miocene Peru, Nigel is still waiting for an adult Megalodon and Chiyo is looking for a juvenile. Fortunately or unfortunately for both of them, their about to find their sharks.
Chiyo's P.O.V.
Chiyo had been driving up and down the coastline for an hour now, without a single sighting of a juvenile Megalodon. Several times, a mako shark swam near the surface, but nothing else showed itself to Chiyo. Then the attack came. The water behind Chiyo seemed to explode and before Chiyo could look back, the shark was already gone.
Chiyo quickly drove next to the cliff line to prevent an attack to her boat before looking at her fake Odobenocetops. It had not fared well.
Half it's body was missing, along with one tusk gone. The camera was barely in the remains and the empty marbles it had as eyes seemed to stare at Chiyo as if to say "Not cool man". Chiyo gulped before putting a diving suit on.
"You may think I'm nuts"Chiyo said. "But the Megalodon might be full, even though it was just paper. I'm going to dive down and explore the kelp forest to find some of the local Odobenocetops and maybe even the juvenile Megalodon."
With that, she finished putting her suit on, strapped on her mask and oxygen tank, and dove underwater. There, she was taken aback in the green water as dozens of Odobenocetops looked for shellfish on the underwater floor as they obliviously went on with their day, with an air similar to modern day manatees in the Everglades.
Each one was a dull grey with brown spots. In males, one tusk was considerably longer than the others. In females, both short tusks were the same length. Each one was keeping a careful eye out for predators.
"That one's injured" Suzanne said, gesturing to female who was swimming weakly and bleeding on her fin. "She likely scratched it on a rock or just barely missed the jaws of a shark. It might be infected, which can be a killer. I'll wait for a Megalodon to come, but if one doesn't, then I'll send her back before the infection can get worse."
Chiyo watched silently behind some kelp as the herd foraged on, oblivious to the human watching them in a sunken world that survives no more.
Nigel's P.O.V.
The ocean was the brightest red Nigel had ever seen. The birds pecked at bits of chum that floated off of the giant ball of chum. Those birds were occasionally taken by the tiger and mako sharks that patrolled around the boat. Then the radar went crazy.
A big blooming sound came from the radar and Nigel, along with Hussein, raced to it. On the radar was a solitary shape. It was a forty foot long shape with two little spikes that represented fins coming out of the side. It was a Megalodon.
Nigel almost ran out of the room in excitement before another bloop came. At this, another forty foot shape appeared on the radar screen. Both men paled as they realized that they may have used too much chum. Now they had two full-grown Megalodon. Unfortunately, Nigel was, well, Nigel. He wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to rescue more animals than necessary.
"Nigel" Husseing growled, looking at Nigel prepare his harpoon, readying the chum over the hull, and grabbing the portal remote. "Don't even think about it."
"Oh, I'm thinking about" Nigel laughed. "Bob is just going to love me."
Hussein seemed to weigh the pros and cons of rescuing the extra animals before he gave Nigel some extra bait as further enticement for the sharks.
He handed him a large red crab from a nearby aquarium that had some type of small crusty coral growing on it's shell. The wildlife explorer looked over the crustacean before Nigel questioned the gift.
"What….?" Nigel started.
"It's the Crusty Crab" Hussein said joking. "Here's the Chum Bucket."
Hussein handed Nigel pail full of (you guessed it) chum.
"Thank you…?"
"You're welcome. Now hurry up. I want to see the look on Bob's face when we first get the Megalodon."
Nigel quickly tied the Crusty Crab onto a rope before tossing him into the rope. For a Megalodon, it would have barely been a snack, but the sharks didn't seem to care. The one closest darted towards the Crusty Crab, who was doing nothing but snapping his claws at the seagulls that got to curious about him.
Nigel quickly pulled the Crusty Crab away from the shark and towards the hull. The Megalodon, seeing the crab move away, she chased after it. Nigel quickly activated the hill portal and the Megalodon was sent back, into the Isla Sorna aquatic holding pens.
The Crusty Crab was quickly hauled back on board to avoid the jaws of a mako shark and placed back in the aquarium. Now came the hard part for Nigel: not catching the shark but placing the Remora on it's fin.
"This is going to be painful for me" Nigel said as he placed the Crusty Crab back in his aquarium. "But it's for a good cause. I'll rescue it when I come back. This crusty little crab is going to get a special place in the Aquarium when we get back. I may as well make a plaque for him describing how he rescued a Megalodon!"
Nigel quickly grabbed the harpoon with the Remora on it before running out. He stood near the later and directed for Hussein to take the chum towards the ladder that one could climb if they had fallen into the ocean. Waiting carefully, Nigel was rewarded for his patience ten minutes after Hussein had moved the chum by the Megalodon swimming right by, it's dorsal fin exposed.
Knowing that this might be his only opportunity, Nigel launched himself out at the shark, not thinking ahead. Only when he harpooned the fin and landed in the water did he start to think about what the consequences of jumping into shark infested waters. A male tiger shark started to rush at Nigel before the wildlife explorer could get out of the water. Before he could do anything, Hussein tossed a portal grenade and Nigel disappeared in a blue flash, leaving behind some very confused birds and sharks.
As Nigel is getting out of his diving gear and into his Permian safari gear, Owen and Bob are introducing Lamia to her new mate, Dakuwaqa. But it appears that Lamia is more territorial than she first lets on.
The boat had just released Dakuwaqa into Megalodon Currents when Lamia melted out of the inky black depths. Bob had had a heart attack at seeing the new addition to Megalodon Currents before deciding to interrogate him into the enclosure.
The two sharks circled around each other as they watched each other, evaluating if it was worth enough energy to attack. Carefully, the two inspected each other, cautious of the other. Then Lamia attacked.
She charged at Dakuwaqa, her jaws agape. Dakuwaqa swam to the side before ramming her gills. It stunned her into stopping and he took the opportunity to bite her dorsal fin. After a moment, Lamia dislodged the nuisance before using her tail to smack Dakuwaqa over the head.
"Someone get those two apart!" Bob yelled on the deck of the boat.
"No, don't!" Owen yelled. "They're just setting up territory boundaries. If you try to separate them, you'll only make them angrier! Just let them fight it out!"
"Just setting up territory boundaries?!" Bob yelled at Owen "They're going to rip each other into fish sticks!"
Owen said nothing as he watched Dakuwaqa give a final bite to Lamia before he went into his newly claimed territory. Lamia, who was bleeding from the bite, swam back and wandered into her territory, now only half as big as it was before. The boat crew relaxed as they watched both sharks disappear back into the vast blue ocean.
In Miocene Peru, Chiyo has been watching the Odobenocetops for nearly an hour and her oxygen supply is running out quickly. Luckily for her and the injured Odobenocetops, the Megalodon have finally come. Unluckily for her and the injured Odobenocetops, the Megalodon have finally come.
The injured Odobenocetops (which Chiyo had named Odie) was the first to be attacked. A juvenile Megalodon seemed to come from nowhere before ramming into Odie. Odie gave a cry of surprise, pain, weakness, stress, and injury and the other Odobenocetops seemed to get the cue that an attack had happened. Swimming in a bunched together pod, they all rushed away from the area, in the direction of Chiyo. Chiyo had no other choice than to open the portal and the early narwhal relatives swam through in a great pod.
Now only Odie was left and she was struggling to regain balance as the Megalodon charged at her with it's mouth open. Not thinking, Chiyo grabbed Odie by her fin and pulled her away from the shark in the nick of time.
The Megalodon barreled past the human and whale and through the kelp… right into another juvenile Megalodon who had been cruising around. Chiyo, seeing her opportunity, activated the portal as the first juvenile swam away from the second one and into the portal, with Meg number two hot on it's tail.
After deactivating the portal, Chiyo looked around for Odie. After twenty minutes of looking around for her, Chiyo's oxygen started to get low. Sadly, she left the magnificent Megalodon world of underwater and into her boat, thinking she wouldn't be able to save Odie.
Odie had beaten her to it. The Odobenocetops was sleeping when she got there, like a dog waiting for it's owner, when she climbed aboard. Odie woke up once Chiyo came back and even started to shake her head, maybe as a threat display, but most likely as a sign of affection to her rescuer.
"I didn't really think that Odobenocetops could leave the water" Chiyo said to the cameraman. "I guess I should have expected that they could, but I couldn't really imagine it until I saw Odie here. They probably only left the water when there was a floating object that they could safely rest on, like a log or patch of kelp."
She scratched the cetacean behind the head affectionately before the Odobenocetops accidentally pierced the inflatable boat with one of her tusks as she shook her head in bliss.
"Oh no" Chiyo muttered. After that, she quickly sent the boat and herself (along with Odie) back into the twenty-first century.
An hour after getting Odie to Suzanne, preparing for an expedition into the Permian, hearing about Phil's close encounter with the Hyneria, getting Bob to build a special tank in the Aquarium for the Crusty Crab, and doing other park work, Nigel and Chiyo are finally ready to capture a mate for Lizardlips. Back into the Permian period in the red land where the heat and thirst aren't your biggest enemy, but your neighbors are.
Nigel and Chiyo came to a bluff overlooking a large swamp. Mud lie everywhere and plants grew along the water line. An odd tree stuck out of the swamp several thousands yards away. Dragonflies buzzed in the air and the footprints of animals that had gone near the water and over the bluff they were on were everywhere.
"Welcome to the Permian" Nigel said. We're hear in the wet season, meaning more animals will be abound. For now, we can focus on finding a mate for Seymour. He's the least dangerous creature in the Red Beds formation at Prehistoric Park. Let's hope that the rest of the Seymouria species is just as calm."
Nigel and Chiyo walked around the banks of the river for several minutes, occasionally stopping to look at a new set of footprints, a species of Triassic insect, or a plant, before they came across a small stream. A Seymouria was walking up the stream's banks, releasing a series of chitterlings that were answered in the distance, upstream.
Nigel grabbed the Seymouria behind the head before Chiyo quickly sent the amphibian back to the twenty-first century before walking upstream. Yet another several minutes followed. Eventually, the faint chitterlings became louder as they traveled farther upstream. At one point, it became so loud that Nigel and Chiyo sent the cameraman back to Prehistoric Park to get earbuds for them.
After ten minutes of walking, sending random Seymouria they came across through, accidentally tripping on large stones, and Permian amphibian chittering, the three humans reached a small lake.
The lake had barren shores that had nothing but mud. Or they would have, except that thousands of mature Seymouria crowded the shores. Each one made a chittering noise and a few were even in the lake, laying eggs. At least a quarter of the lake was filled with Seymouria eggs already.
"This is just like a penguin colony" Nigel said. "Seymouria are a semi-social animal. They live in groups of about twenty or less if enough food is around. If not, then it's every amphibian for itself. Seymouria mate for life, like certain birds and theropods. The Seymouria are making the chittering noises to try and look for each other. Modern emperor penguins do this to locate one another in the colony. There must be thousands here! This is probably one of the less protected lakes that they lay their eggs in during mating season. During the start of the wet season, the Seymouria find the most isolated, protected ponds they can find to lay their eggs in. Once the pond is filled up, the Seymouria that didn't lay their eggs yet look for a new pond. I don't know why the males are going in the water. Wait a minute…"
Each male Seymouria was swimming as quickly as they could, randomly weaving, turning, diving, and jumping onto the shore. They looked as if they were trying to avoid something.
Chiyo nudged Nigel as he noticed a green shape, easily the size of an American alligator swim up the stream and into the lake. She pointed at several more green shapes before Nigel and Chiyo took in the sheer amount of the green shapes. While thousands of Seymouria were swimming, at least a hundred of the shapes were in this lake.
"What are you?" Chiyo asked, before perking up as she remembered something. "Wait a minute… Nigel, get away from the lake!"
But he was too late. A giant green amphibian burst forth from the waters and nearly took his head off. Nigel stumbled back in fright, surprise, and shock before bolting inland. The animal made no move to chase after the man.
The animal was green with a brown underbelly and black markings around it's eyes, like a raccoon or killer whale. The tail was powerful, along with it's jaws. The legs were small, almost comical for an animal so large, but it's teeth looked like they came from a monster. If Hollywood created a movie about a mutated alligator/swamp monster, this creature would fit the bill perfectly.
"An Eryops!" Nigel exclaimed. "We saw one of these guys when we came here the first time. It tried to snap up a juvenile Edaphosaurus. In fact, since we're in the same area as last time, the very same one might be in this lake!"
The Eryops opened it's mouth wide, displaying all of it's dangerous teeth, before clamping it shut with an amazingly loud clamp. The Seymouria had given the Eryops a large berth. Then an idea hit Chiyo.
"Nigel" Chiyo said. "I think I know why the male Seymouria are swimming about so randomly. When their mate starts laying eggs, the males try to keep the attention of the Eryops, but not get caught. Looks like one of them didn't make it."
An Eryops was lumbering out of the lake, an injured Seymouria stuck in it's jaws. The retilomorph hung limp as it wait for the inevitable to happen. The Eryops dropped the Seymouria, immediately bolted. Chiyo sent the little animal through before turning back to Nigel, a familiar twinkle in his eyes.
"Nigel" Chiyo said seriously. "No. I know what you're thinking and Bob will kill you for it."
"Chiyo" Nigel said. "I'm not going to bring back all the Eryops. Maybe just nine, twenty at max. Seven as a minimum. And perhaps…"
"Nigel, I want to see you survive longer than five minutes when we get back to the park. You saw Bob when we got the Megapirhana! He'll kill you if you send back twenty killer salamanders on steroids."
Nigel ignored her, splashing the surface of the water and chucking a rock at a pair of submerged Eryops. Three great amphibians lunged out of the water, in a manner similar to modern day Nile crocodiles. Nigel got a free swamp shower before activating the time portal. Three Eryops disappeared. Nigel grinned at the cameraman before he got back to capturing more Eryops and Seymouria. Chiyo just sighed and went back to Prehistoric Park to break the news to Bob. He was going to have a fit.
At Prehistoric Park, Owen through with his workshift of training Velociraptors. Now, he is doing a side project to try and increase the happiness of the Australopithecus in their enclosure. Modern day apes have learned to use sign language in captive settings. Now, Owen is teaching them sign language, but he's going to have his work cut out for him.
Owen had been teaching them all random signs, though most had lost interest and went away. He was currently teaching Grey's troop, as it was calmer and didn't have Hercules always hooting, agitated that Grey was still alive.
In front of him on a log sat Blue, Lucy, and a female named Aussie. Grey stood nearby, watching as well. Owen had several cards with him that had pictures on them. So far, he had taught them words like me, you, I, for, she, he, a, listen, mom, dad, aunt, uncle, bird, monkey, lizard, and park.
They sat next to the stream in their enclosure, the rest of the troop foraging near the waterfall. They were in the lush forest part of the enclosure, as opposed to the savanna area. A gate and wooden corridor connected it to the African Herbivore exhibit, where the Deinotherium, Ancylotherium, Sivatherium (you just can't ever get enough theriums), and other African herbivores resided, along with a few modern day herbivores that had been rescued with them as well.
"That" Owen pointed at the log they were sitting on. "Is a log."
Owen made the sign for log before little Blue lost interest. Owen sighed in exasperation. All he wanted to do was teach humanity's ancestors how to speak in sign language, find out if they were happy, and maybe have a decent conversation with one over tea. But nooooooooooo. That was just too much to ask for.
Owen brightened up when Blue started to sign random words, but he accidentally insulted Owen by signing: Mom. He a monkey uncle.
After that, Owen decided that their training had gone far enough for today. Stroking his mustache, he walked outside of the enclosure. He found being called a monkey's uncle by a baby Australopithecus who didn't even now what that meant much more hard to deal with then a pack of aggressive Velociraptors that he was supposed to train. He needed a raise.
It appears as if Owen has his work cut out for him. As Nigel and Chiyo are rescuing more Seymouria and Eryops, Owen is getting over his embarrassment, Nick is getting over his disappointment of not having the Tricera-Tractor become an attraction, Bob getting over the anger and shock of Nigel continually sending more and more Eryops and Seymouria, and Lamia getting used to her tank mate, it appears as if Odie the Odobenocetops has found a friend. And he is a bad influence.
Odie stared up at Phil, who in turn looked down at her. Suzanne watched this at a distance away, afraid to try and tranqulize or move Phil in fear of aggravating him into attacking cute little Odie.
Odie continued to stare up at the feathery creature looking at her. She had been eating shellfish from a plate when Phil had strolled by her enclosure and broken the clasp that stopped the gate from swinging open.
The enclosure was in Suzanne's veterinary complex on Isla Nublar. How Phil had sneaked past the security cameras, Suzanne didn't even want to know. Odie had been put into a small area that was roughly the size of an acre. It was an outdoor saltwater pool, with live seaweed and kelp growing on the bottom, but no sharp rocks or any coral to prevent Odie from cutting herself. Smooth sand was at the bottom and a few rocks were there, so that any marine creatures could scratch off skin parasites that marine mammals are so often plagued with. A white sandy beach was near the door and glass fence. The fence was only about the height of a man's waist.
Phil could have stepped over, no problem, but he had decided he had wanted to break the door. Odie had been swimming around, exploring the tank and eating shellfish on the beach when Phil had broken in.
After an intense two minutes of staring at each other, Phil lowered his head and sniffed the early narwhal relative. Odie seemed to think of this as a sign of friendship and she placed a piece of oyster meat at Phil's taloned feet.
Phil cawed curiously at this strange tusked mammal that had placed a strange piece of foreign smelling meat. The Odobenocetops waited for the bird to eat it for five or so minutes before Phil got the cue. Lowering his head, he picked up the meat before tossing his head back and swallowing the meat. His eyes widened at the taste before he sat down and unto his haunches. How had he not tasted this meat before?!
Suzanne watched the entire spectacle from a distance away, more confused than concerned. She had lowered her tranquilizer rifle and was now watching Phil sniff the spot where Odie had placed the meat.
"What are they doing?" Suzanne asked herself when Phil started walking out of the complex with Odie following. "I think they're looking for more oysters."
The cameraman laughed at the ridiculous theory before remembering this was Prehistoric Park. Here, Cronus fought the world's only Tricera-Tractor, Microraptors lived in Nigel's office, Neanderthals and Homo Erectus worked in the park alongside three former civil war slaves, dromaeosaurids were trained, Australopithecus called trainers a monkey's uncle in sign language, and Argentinosaurus tried to befriend inanimate cranes.
Suzanne sighed as the two new friends disappeared around a corner. She had nostalgia for the old days when she didn't have to worry about terror birds and early narwhal relatives teaming up to obtain oyster meat.
In the Permian period, Nigel and Chiyo have finished sending back all the Eryops they can without giving Bob a heart attack and rescuing nearly three dozen Seymouria from the jaws of the great aquatic hunters. Now, they are after a mate for Prehistoric Park's Sphenacodon, Lizardlips. Instead, they are about to find more herbivorous synapsids instead.
Nigel was just about ready to leave the lake when Chiyo said she needed to refill her canteen at a nearby spring. She left a second later into the brush before Nigel cracked a mischievous grin and pulled a jar out and scooping up Seymouria eggs from the lake. When his jar was filled to the max with water and amphibian eggs, he quickly ran through the time portal, gave the eggs to Bob (who was fuming at Nigel for bringing back twenty Eryops), and came back. The portal closed, just in time for Chiyo to return.
"Over here!" Chiyo yelled at Nigel. "I found some Edaphosaurus, but they're different from the ones at Prehistoric Park. You should come see them."
Nigel walked over to Chiyo before she took him to the swamp again. An Eryops lounged lazily on the bank of the shore as a herd of yellow-sailed Edaphosaurus grazed on the horsetails that the swamp had to offer the herbivores.
Unlike the green skinned, red and black sailed Edaphosaurus Novomexicanus already at Prehistoric Park, these Edaphosaurus were a vivid scarlet bodied species. The sail on their back was yellow and they had black striped tails.
"These are Edaphosaurus Pogonias" Chiyo said. "I didn't really study much about this species, but here's all you'll need to know. 1) They are herbivores. 2) They are Edaphosaurus. 3) Predators like Dimetrodon and Sphenacodon prey on Edaphosaurus, meaning that if we stay, then we'll likely meet a predator."
"That's actually a pretty good idea Chiyo" Nigel said. "I think I can vouch for all of us when I say that we should stay here and wait for a Sphenacodon."
Of course, that just meant that it would be easier for Nigel to capture several Sphenacodon for Prehistoric Park. Chiyo didn't mind it, but the cameraman thought it would be wise to avoid a Permian reptile that was bigger than Dimetrodon and even fought them regularly. Maybe he should have just called in sick today…
At Prehistoric Park, Odie and Phil have raided the park's oyster supply, frustrating Bob even mo so after Nick's stupid move with the Tricera-Tractor and Nigel's move to bring multiple Eryops back. To calm himself, he has decided to deal with the park's less threatening new arrivals: the Seymouria.
Bob had put the finishing touches on the new and improved Seymouria Sanctuary when he felt as if he had earned a break. In fact, he had skipped his lunch break to move the Seymouria to Seymouria Sanctuary. Seymour seemed to happy to have some friends and had immediately started calling to see if his mate was among the animals rescued.
Seymouria Sanctuary was mostly scrubby rocky land. Shrubs and horsetails grew everywhere and a few burrows were made to give them a place to hide during the night. A pond provided the, with an area to lay their eggs and cool off. A ridge of looked all of this, giving the Seymouria high ground to seek to look for insects.
Bob wiped his brow as he observed the lake. Several females were laying eggs in the lake, which Bob would have to go and collect later. But for now, Bob could just lay down and watch the retilomorph so about their lives, exploring this new land of possibilities.
"Seymouria doesn't have to drink water" Bob said as he laid down a against rock. "They get all the water they need from roots that they chew on to get water and vitamins. They also eat clay for minerals, but that's besides the topic. In the nooks and crannies, we've put a bunch of goodies for them. Grasshoppers, pieces of watermelon, lizards, fish, and even two or three dodo eggs."
Bob took out a granola bar and bit a piece off before going on.
"Dodos are a lot like chickens. They lay lots of eggs, even though they're unfertilized. The only time a fertilized egg comes around is during nesting season. Then they'll have anywhere from a fertilized egg to as many as five. Although most of the time, it's just a single egg. Buzz of you little twerp!"
A Seymouria had tried to steal Bob's granola bar. Bob then pushed the little animal away. The Seymouria gave a little call that sounded similar to a frog and immediately all the available Seymouria swarmed Bob, jumping and clinging onto him.
Bob yelped in surprise before he was buried under an avalanche of reptilomorphs. He tried to rise to find the weight of the tiny animals was too much. He sighed in defeat when the first Seymouria walked in front of him and gave a mocking croak.
"Laugh it while you can" Bob said to the Permian inhabitant. "The Dimetrodon need a new dietary supplement. Your time is ticking."
The Seymouria gave no indication of hearing this. As he walked by, Bob saw a little scar on it's nose. It was Seymour, the original. Seymour walked to Bob's pinned down left hand before taking the granola bar out of his grip.
"SEYMOUR!"
Seymour quickly gave a croak out before running towards the lake. There, he plunged into the water and swam out of Bob's area where he would be able to wade in before swallowing the granola bar. Bob learned a valuable lesson that day: never take a granola bar into a Permian enclosure or else the leader will croak and the rest of the animals will mob you until the leader gets the granola bar and runs away.
In the Permian period, Nigel and Chiyo have waited for nearly an hour. It appears as if their patience is about to pay off with not just one Sphenacodon, but three. Nigel hopes Prehistoric Park is ready for more prehistoric Permian predators, because he's rescuing them, regardless of what Bob thinks about it.
The Edaphosaurus Pogonias were grazing on the horsetails next to the swamp. The youngest member of the herd, a juvenile male, stood watch, since juveniles had better eyesight than the adults. He swallowed a stone to aid digestion before a snarl was heard from a nearby grove of trees. Luckily for the source of the hiss, Edaphosaurus could hear very well.
Inside the grove, Sphenacodon male was following two females, most likely sisters. One of the sisters was hissing at the male before she lunged out at him in a mock charge. The Sphenacodon male didn't react standing his ground and continuing to snarl and hiss.
"The females are testing the male to see if he's strong" Nigel said to the cameraman. "The females have come into heat, but they want strong genes to be passed on and into the next generation. Look at the male! He's charging at the leading bull Edaphosaurus to prove himself!"
The Edaphosaurus flashed it's bright yellow back to be darker and more intimidating, but the Sphenacodon showed no fear. The rest of the herd had backed off and we'e now watching as the two males of different synapsid species showed off against one another.
The Edaphosaurus had surprisingly sharp teeth and claws and a powerful tail to use as a weapon if need be. The sail gleamed in the sunlight and muscle rippled underneath the skin of the herbivore.
The Sphenacodon was snarling at it's smaller opponent. Large teeth and claws gave it an advantage at frontal assault, but it's tail power was pathetic for an animal it's size. Greater muscles worked in a well-oiled way that seemed to let it glide across the ground.
The Edaphosaurus had it's back turned to the predator, with the tail lashing to and fro. The black stripes seemed to grow larger as the synapsid swung the tail, something that might have intimidated a smaller creature. But this was no minor predator. This was a Sphenacodon, the top predator of the ecosystem, determined to prove itself to one of the females.
"Well this is going to be an interesting fight" Chiyo said, a wee bit frightened for both animals. "If the Edaphosaurus hits the Sphenacodon right, it can break it's jaw. Or if a well placed kick gets it's face, the Sphenacodon can lose an eye. Nigel and I would save them now, but if we were to move the two right now, they would become even more violent. Look at them go!"
The predator lunged at the tail, snapping it's jaws down on it with a crunch and a cleaving sound. A moment later, the Edaphosaurus Pogonias pulled it's tail away… without the first foot that made up the tip.
The Sphenacodon snarled at the synapsid as it swallowed the meat before roaring at the sky in a sound that echoed across the landscape. It was the sound of a magnificent top predator, now disappeared from our world, crying for the presence of death.
The Edaphosaurus was in full panic mode now as he ran towards the water. Edaphosaurus and Dimetrodon were semi-aquatic creatures, moving between land and water at will. Sphenacodon, on the other hand, downright sucked at swimming.
The herd joined in the rush, with the male Sphenacodon chasing after them from behind. Nigel activated his portal for the herd, while Chiyo activated hers for the Sphenacodon. The Edaphosaurus stopped at the blue vortex of light until the Sphenacodon females joined the hunt. At that point, the herd rushed through Nigel's portal and the predators disappeared into Chiyo's portal.
As things cool down in the Permian, Nigel and Chiyo return to Prehistoric Park, and Bob gets over Seymour stealing his granola bar, Suzanne now has to save Phil and Odie from some rather angry inhabitants that do NOT want to share their oysters.
Phil and Odie were in the Flaming Cliffs formation when Phil picked up the scent of oysters. Odie did a strange kind of shuffle, much like a modern seal, behind Phil until the massive terror bird stopped. Suzanne followed from a distance away, making sure they didn't get in trouble. Ever since the Not So Great Hyneria Incident Of This Morning, she had been making sure everyone in Prehistoric Park had kept a careful eye on the South American predator.
Suzanne knew of only one creature that ate oysters in Flaming Cliff formation. Suzanne hoped Phil had caught the scent of oysters from the nearby coastline where the Archelon and Odobenocetops. No such luck.
Phil had reached part of the Flaming Cliff formation where a small oasis lake stood at the base of an expanse of shrubbed sand dunes. Rocks jutted out randomly from the lake and fish swam along the shell covered bottom. The inhabitants of the enclosure were most likely in their large burrows shade of the few trees that dotted the oasis.
"Oh crud" Suzanne said when Odie launched herself off of the raised platform used to observe the strange inhabitants before Phil followed. "This is bad."
Odie dived into the lake, using the her tusks to feel among the shells for living oysters. Phil stood in the water, which at it's deepest was four feet. The terror bird looked nervously around, possibly keeping watch for Hyneria.
Odie came up three minutes later, which seemed to make Phil relax. At least there weren't any large carnivorous fish. Odie dropped four large oysters at Phil's feet before cracking them open by bringing her tusks down. The smell of the mollusk flesh reached Phil's nostrils.
Phil squawked in approval, alerting the inhabitants to his and Odie's encroachment. Confused sounding gurgles came from the burrows under the trees before the inhabitants came out.
Each had a dull red crest with bright red feathers. A toothless large beak was on the mouth with naturally narrow eyes. Clawed feathered arms were in a clapping motion and the tail feathers were remarkably larger than the other feathers.
"Oh no" Suzanne said as Phil and Odie ate the shellfish. "The Oviraptor are out. Oviraptor usually stay in their burrows and sleep during midday to escape the worst of the heat in deserts. Everything else they do above ground. The burrows go a bit of a ways down and opens up into a chamber the size of your average living room. Mates and families share chambers, but they don't create underground colonies or tunnel systems. Run Phil!"
The Oviraptors had started to surround Phil, but the terror bird was faster. Odie dove into the water before Phil started running in almost as fast. The Oviraptor charged after them, although slower since they were used to standing still and waiting for fish to come to them.
Suzanne quickly opened the gate out of the enclosure before Phil changed direction and ran towards it. Odie followed behind him until they got to the shore. From there, she shuffled along as fast as she could. Once they were out, Suzanne tried to close the door, only to find Odie had accidentally jammed an oyster in the way of the doors.
"Odie!" Suzanne yelled. The Odobenocetops seemed to make clicking sounds in apology before Phil dove forwards and grabbed the oyster before bringing it out of the door's way and cracking it open within his powerful beak to get to the delicious meat inside.
The Oviraptor mob was literally a foot away from the giant doors when they finally closed with a loud clang. The Oviraptor mob paced the fence for a moment before making sounds of aggression that seemed to scare Odie. The Odobenocetops grabbed the oysters she had recovered before waddling down the path. Phil, not wanting to lose his hard earned seafood, ran down after her, eager for more succulent mollusks and leaving a very confused and concerned vet standing at the gates of Oviraptor Oasis.
Suzanne watched as the two disappeared before taking the nearest monorail to Isla Pena. She didn't care what John Hammond would say. She was done with work for today.
At the newly expanded Red Bed formation, Nigel is watching the new animals become integrated into their habitats.
Nigel sat on a raised wooden platform as he watched the Eryops rise in and out of the water methodically. The Eryops were swimming in the many riverways and basking on the many muddy banks that made up Eryops Estuary. The occasional tree rose out of the water, providing shade for the great amphibians if they needed it.
Down the path, the two Edaphosaurus herds, Novomexicanus and Pogonias, were grazing together along the rocky shrubbed hills that made up Edaphosaurus Valley. Hosetails grew in abundance and two small rivers emptied into a large pond.
The Seymouria in Seymouria Sanctuary were currently crawling into their burrows as they prepared to take shelter during the night to hide from nonexistent predators that they would never have to be afraid of again. Bob had already collected their eggs and placed them in a special hatchery specialized building in the Sornan Veterinary Complex.
On the coast was Odobenocetops coastline, where Chiyo currently was. The exhibit consisted of fields of seagrass and forests of kelp. Beds of clams, oysters, scallops, and mussels littered the bottom, caverns, and rocks. The pod was currently resting on the floating patches of kelp, small kelp crabs picking their skin clean of parasites or dead bits. It was nearby the Brygmophyseter summer tank, but still a ways away. Brygmophyseter sometimes hunted wild Odobenocetops.
Nigel had remotely activated a portal attached to the Remora after four days in the past (about an hour after he got back), which sent the newest addition to Prehistoric Park into the aquatic holding pens. Bob had lost his top at seeing another adult Megalodon brought back.
"Nigel" Bob said over the radio. "Theo is getting a wee bit angry. So get over here or else I'll give you to Cronus."
"Bob, relax a bit…"
"Don't you tell me to relax Nigel! You brought back twenty giant salamanders that aren't afraid to snap at me and a pair of giant sharks! And you want me to RELAX!? I don't think so!"
Nigel sighed before hanging up on the radio and walking away.
Half an hour later at Hell Creek Formation…
John watched outside of Ankylosaurus Alcove as Nigel and Bob both rode up the road on the Tricera-Tractor. They both wore childlike grins as nearby Suzanne and Chiyo opened the gates to the enclosure. In the distance, Andy waded in the river. Several female Triceratops grazed on the ferns and cycads that made up the vegetation of their enclosure.
"Come out Theo!" Nigel shouted into the enclosure as Suzanne closed the gate. "Don't be shy! We just want to fight you!"
For a moment, the enclosure remained the same. Then something heavy hit the Tricera-Tractor from the side and nearly flipped it over. On the left side of the Tricera-Tractor, Theo had charged and attacked. His frill was red in aggression and his quills rattled in anger. He clamped his beak shut with a loud clap as a show of strength before he ran in front of the tractor to meet Nigel and Bob head on.
Nigel and Bob laughed in joy before they drove the Tricera-Tractor towards Theo. Theo responded by charging at them head on. The vehicle almost tipped over before Theo stopped attacking. At this, Nigel told Bob that it was safest to retreat.
They backed off slowly to avoid disturbing the rest of the herd until they had backed out of the enclosure, where John Hammond approached Nigel.
"Nigel" John said with the cheeriness of an eccentric old man. "I think that it's been a great success with rescuing mates for the previously alone animals. I think that we should now set our sights a bit higher. Maybe the last of the dinosaurs to ever live…"
Next time, Nigel and Chiyo will save the last dinosaurs
(two forty foot tyrannosaurs fight each other in a barren desert for the carcass of a Protoceratops)
Along with other lucky survivors.
(a rat-like mammal suckles her young in the skull of a theropod)
And Phil's new friend gets him into more trouble.
(Odie cowers behind Phil's leg as several male Odobenocetops display their long tusks at the two)
All next time on Prehistoric Park!
Animals Rescued:
18 Edaphosaurus Pogonias: seven males, eleven females
24 Odobenocetops Peruvianus: eight males, sixteen females
3 Sphenacodon Ferocior: one male, two females
4 Carcharodon Megalodon: three males, one female
20 Eryops Megacephalus: ten males, ten females
34 Seymouria Sanjuanensis: fourteen males, twenty females