Okay…the action begins…now. Well, at least the prelude to it. Nothing really much to say, except for the disclaimers. I do not own Disney's Dinosaur, Prehistoric Park, or any of the other shows/movies mentioned here, just the characters that I created.

Soundtrack: Finding Water by James Newton Howard/Aladar and Neera by James Newton Howard/Aladar Moves the Herd by James Newton Howard (pause at 0:39 seconds then resume...)

Hazel jolted awake when she heard the bellows. It was a good thing too because she was falling asleep and she had been leaning towards the side, towards the gravel below. Coupled with the bag she carried and she would have fallen fast. If it weren't for Kron and Bruton's rude awakening, she would have fallen dead on the spot.

Hazel shook herself awake and readjusted herself back on her seated position. She chose to ride on Baylene's back for a few hours before she got back to walking on foot. The girl could not recall how long she had been sleeping, or when she climbed onto the sauropod's back, but that did not matter to her now. The herd's excitement and the flurry of action is what mattered.

The human looked behind her and saw Flia in her usual spot. She had her wings folded across her chest and was looking past her. Hazel lifted an eyebrow up and looked in that direction. She did not have her goggles, as she had stowed them away into her bag earlier that day, so she had to squint in order to see. Hazel did wear her hat though, which she needed in order to keep her head cool. The sun was blinding and there was not a cloud in the sky. What's better, not a lot of dust was flying. The human made out the figures of the various dinosaurs, and Kron and Bruton, making their way towards a rocky hill. Hazel looked back at Flia and noticed that she was smiling.

"Uh hey, what's going on?" she asked her friends around her. "Why is everyone so excited?"

Eema, with her rounded body and tired legs, hurried forward a little and let out a relieving gasp. "It's the lake!"

Hazel could not help but grin at that word. Finally, the situation was starting to get better. Hazel closed her mouth and felt the dryness. She took a gulp and noticed that her throat was dry too, probably from sleeping with her mouth open. Too long has she been without water. She looked forward and urged Baylene to hurry up with a couple of excited pushes on her neck. Baylene was simply too huge and did not feel those pushes at all.

Just then, Yar, the elder lemur, climbed up from behind Eema's armored head and looked out at the sight. He too was smiling.

"We made it!?" he asked her.

"It's just over that…that hill baby!" the Styracosaurus gasped with joy.

"Oh thank goodness…" Baylene tiredly said as she did her best to keep up.

Aladar rushed forward from behind Eema and made his way towards the hill. Unlike the other dinosaurs, who only cared about getting water, he waited to allow the elder women to catch up to him. He turned to them and pushed them to hurry up, especially to Eema.

"Come on Eema! Water! Remember water!?" he told her as a form of motivation.

"Oh it's time to refresh…my memory!" Eema smiled and pushed on up the hill.

Hazel let out a giggle and was about to hang on to Baylene again when something tapped on her shoulder. She turned around and saw an ecstatic Flia spread her wings apart and turn her back to her. The Pteranodon still kept her gaze on the human, as if she were waiting for something.

"Want to see if we could beat them to it?" Flia asked as she gestured to Hazel.

Hazel immediately got up and made her way to the pterosaur. Obviously, she did not have to ask that sort of question. Carefully, she balanced herself on Baylene's back like a tight rope walker. Thankfully, it was a short distance and she made it to her flying partner. Hazel supported herself onto Flia and with a turn, they took off.

They did not fly too high and kept close to the herd. Since flying by air is a lot faster way of travel, the dinosaurs blurred below them. Even though the herd was walking fast up the hill, the scouts were still faster. Hazel even snickered when they passed over Kron and Bruton. Just for that moment, they were the ones winning. When they finally made it over the hill to the lake, Hazel let out a cry of victory.

"Water here I co-!" she cried before she got interrupted.

Both of them fell silent as they flew over the lake, or at least, what was a lake. Flia flew over the entire lake perimeter, hoping that what they were seeing was just a hallucination. It was all too real…

"Oh no…" was all Hazel could utter.

What was once a lake was what Hazel would call a dried up dirt hole. There was no water in sight, not even a puddle. The dried up lakebed did not show any cracks, a sign that the place dried up recently. There was absolutely nothing there, save for the dried up remains of a Styracosaurus off to the side.

Flia made another turn back to the herd. When she did, both noticed the rest of the herd arriving at the hilltop and beholding the disappointing sight. To their left, they saw their friends Baylene and Aladar arrive. Eema was slowly following behind them and her voice echoed through the area.

"I'm just gonna walk into that lake…until the water's up to my eyeballs," she gasped when she finally made it.

"And soak it all…in," Eema said and then let out a sad sigh.

The herd stood there, staring at the lake. Flia found a place in between her friends where she could drop off Hazel. The Pteranodon slowly descended and reared back, allowing for a soft landing. Wings spread apart and standing tall, she waited until Hazel landed on the ground. After seeing her run up and stand with the mini-herd, Flia took off and made her way towards the front, to where Kron was.

Hazel stood there and stared at the lakebed. She even felt sorry for the dead Styracosaurus on the other side. She imagined that the dinosaur must have died there, waiting for the rains to come and offer a second chance. Or perhaps some predators came and attacked it on the spot while it waited for water. Either way, the skeleton lay there as a symbol of death.

The human also wondered if this area was once a green valley. The chances of this place being lush with vegetation in the past were slim, as this area would be bordered next to an unforgivable desert. But it was still a possibility. That and the meteor probably destroyed the place. Hazel could not help but wonder if they had been walking over the bones of any unfortunate dinosaurs, even previous members of this herd. The more she thought about it, the sorrier she felt. That moment of grief was interrupted by the echo of Kron's command.

"The Nesting Grounds are only a few days away! Keep moving!" the purple Iguanodon commanded.

The herd responded to that command with a series of disappointing groans and cries. Hazel turned towards Kron and the herd and saw them walking away. Neera, who was keeping up with Kron, was trying to tell him something. Whatever it was, he was not going for her advice. Bruton was not there, as he must have been sent to a scouting mission himself. As for Flia, she must have taken off somewhere.

None of that mattered to Hazel as the rage built up in her. She stared at the leader in anger, who was now bellowing to push the herd on. She knew that if they kept going like this, only a fraction of the herd would survive. Hazel marched over there, hands clenched into fists, to yell at her boss in the face.

"We're moving already? Oh we'll never keep up…" Baylene said as she looked on at the now moving herd.

"There was water here…" muttered Eema who sounded a little ways off from the rest. "Always water here before."

Hazel just passed Baylene and stopped when she heard Eema's voice. She followed that sound and saw the elder dinosaur walking into the dried-up lakebed. Hazel took a glance at the herd before making her way down to Eema. She was not the only one to think that way as Aladar made his way to Eema too.

"We always had water…always. And…plenty of mud," she cried.

"Oh Eema please," said Baylene who was walking slowly down to her friend. "The herd won't wait. We must carry on."

Hazel was about halfway down the slope when Flia landed behind her. She heard the familiar flap of wings and turned around to see her friend. Flia, who was now on all fours and wings folded next to her, stared at her.

"Hazel, we need to fly. Now," she urged her.

The human gaped at her. "What!?"

"Kron's orders. We need to scout."

"Fine. But we're not leaving until we help Eema," Hazel told her and ran down the dry shore.

Flia watched as the human made her way towards the rest of the group. She let out a sigh of frustration before taking off towards them. It didn't take her very long to land next to Eema. With Aladar, she tried to make the old woman get back up on her feet. She was on one side while Aladar was on the other. It didn't really help that Eema was heavy and she was not supporting herself at all. Flia had thin and weak arms, which were only made for flying and not carrying things. She did not even notice the lemurs come up from behind Eema to stay next to her.

"You've got to get up!" Aladar grunted as he tried to help Eema.

"Come on old girl! Or we'll get left behind!" Flia urged as well.

Nearby, Baylene had made it to the lake and the ground cracked under her weight. Each step got louder and deeper as she got closer to them.

"There was water everywhere…" Eema cried again.

"There is no water dear," the Brachiosaurus tried to explain.

Another loud step. This time, Hazel heard it. She stopped running and looked back at Baylene, who was still walking towards them. Hazel was about halfway between the sauropod and the rest of her friends when she heard those gurgling sounds. Not only that, but she also noted the footprints from the shore, which got deeper the further in she went. Baylene made another step and the girl's curiosity piqued. Hazel looked back at Aladar, who was still trying to get her back up.

"Aladar hold it!" she called to him.

Immediately when she said that, he let Eema go and allowed her to fall back on the ground. Flia squawked in surprise when the weight got heavier and backed up a little to avoid being crushed. Aladar looked at Hazel and waited for her to say something. She did not say anything, but she did point at Baylene, who made one final step. When she did, the sound returned. Those did not notice before, but Zini was right next to Baylene's foot at the time. The lemur watched them and waited to see if he had not been going crazy too.

"Baylene…don't move," Aladar told the sauropod and quickly walked up to her.

"Oh what is it?" the Brachiosaurus reared back a little. "What's wrong?"

When she moved, a small gurgling sound from under her feet. At this point, the lemur, the Iguanodon, and the human were already surrounding that foot.

"Do you hear that?" Zini asked the other two.

"Uh huh. There's something under there," replied Hazel. She along with Zini were kneeling down.

"I sure do. Lift your foot Baylene," Aladar told her.

Baylene lifted her foot up and the three began digging from the footprint. The blue Iguanodon shoveled out clumps of dirt with his left foot. The human was doing the same, only with her left hand and at a slower pace. The yellow furred lemur used both of his hands to shovel the dirt away, and even fell in the hole during the process. While they were digging, Hazel realized something that she had learned from a while ago.

"I've seen elephants do this on TV a few times, during periods of serious drought. If this is a dried lake and what I heard is what I think it is..." she thought as she kept on digging.

"Now press down," Aladar told Baylene. When he said that, Hazel and Zini backed away to allow the clawed foot to fall.

The elder dinosaur pressed her foot back into the mold. The gurgling came back and for a second, nothing happened. That was, until Baylene's immense weight gave way and the ground broke. The crashing footfall was followed by a brown gurgling liquid, which was now flooding out from beneath the dirt. Everyone smiled at what had happened.

"Whoo! I always loved big girls!" Zini cheered.

"Water…!" Aladar gasped and backed up a little.

"Oh my goodness!" Baylene reared her head back at the realization that she saved them all.

Hazel laughed and jumped for joy. "I KNEW IT! THANK YOU ANIMAL PLANET!"

Thankfully, the creatures around her did not pay any attention to that comment, as they were mostly concerned with the water.

The blue ornithopod reared his head back and bellowed into the air. The herd stopped moving and turned to see what had happened. Even Kron and Neera stopped to investigate.

"Water! Come on!" he hollered at them.

Aladar ran back to the watering hole and dug a little deeper. Nearby, the lemurs were hopping alongside a tired Eema, who was desperately walking towards the puddle as fast as she could.

"That's it Eema. Come drink," Baylene gestured to her friend.

Hazel was watching her and nearly fell over when she felt a little nudge from her back. The human turned on both sides and saw Flia towering to her right. She was smirking and shook her head before going in for a drink. Hazel knew that was a way of saying 'you really are something'. She soaked in this victory with her friends and buried her face in the puddle. The human knew she was taking in gulps of sediment covered water, but that did not bother her. All she cared about right now was easing her dry throat.

After a minute or so of gulping down the dirty water, Hazel brought her head back up and was gasping for air. Her bangs and front locks of her hair were soaked. She shook her head to part them away and breathed in the oxygen. Since the water was dirty, some sediments stuck to her face and she took the action of wiping them off using the neck part of her shirt. The feeling of being free from the dirt relieved her.

The relaxing moment was ruined when Kron appeared. Flia and Aladar stopped drinking and perked their heads up at him when he came along. Hazel finished wiping her face and started shaking when he came close. Except for them, the others kept on drinking.

"Kron look! All you had to do was dig and-," Aladar explained but was then rudely interrupted.

"Good, now get out of the way," the leader demanded, which caused the newcomer to back away.

Kron stomped and roared at them. Everyone had been taken by surprise at his action. The group, dinosaur, lemur, and human, backed up and gave the selfish leader what he wanted; his own drinking puddle. Kron immediately took gulps from the puddle, not even minding the still thirsty members around him. Hazel had landed on her rump when he roared and had backed up by a few feet to get away from him. Even when she was already a considerable distance away, she was still shaking from the event. Not only that, but being pushed away by her boss all because he wanted to have the puddle all to himself made her want to scream at his face even more.

At that moment, when Kron shooed them away, a series of bellows sounded from the far shore of the lake. All of them felt the vibrations from the footfalls. Hazel looked in that direction and was shocked to see the entire herd stampeding towards the large puddle. She let out a scream and ran to the edge of the shore. At least…she was about to when Flia called to her and gestured her to climb on her back. Without a second thought, Hazel climbed on and the duo took off to the skies, away from the stampede.

The two scouts found safety at the far shore where the herd came from. They stood there, side by side, watching the huge spectacle. Every single member of the herd, whether they be big or small, were squeezing past each other. They even witnessed some dinosaurs get shoved away by their comrades, just to be denied a turn at the puddle. There was even Baylene, who stood there in shock her smaller comrades surrounded her handy work for a drink.

Not only did they get a good view of the situation, but also a good view at two dinosaurs of the opposite personality. Somewhere away from the main cluster, Aladar was tending to Eema by helping her gently push the incoming members away. Just then, a loud bellow was heard from the main part of the herd. Both diverted their attention to that portion and no doubt did they see Kron telling the others to back off from his water.

Hazel shook her head in disappointment. "Geez, what a big difference there."

Flia said nothing about that comment. Both of them just stood there and continued to watch. Neither of them knew it, but they were not the only ones to observe this phenomenon. Nearby, Neera watched the whole thing. No doubt was she thinking the same way as Flia and Hazel were. This event continued on until the cluster broke off; each member satisfied, or somewhat satisfied, with the drink they had.

That evening, Kron decided to let the herd rest in the area. After being driven mercilessly and restlessly through the desert, they had finally gotten some well needed rest. Couple that with a drink of water and that is luxury.

As usual, Aladar's troupe rested further away from the herd. All slept around each other, forming somewhat of a protective circle. Everyone was accounted for…except for Hazel. While they slept, she had made her way back to the puddle and refilled her bottles. Thankfully, her bottles had filters, so she would not ingest any of the sediment. Except for one, the Bobble bottles were now filled with brown, cloudy water.

The puddle was not that far off from the herd, so Hazel knew she was safe. There she was, kneeling, and storing her last bottle into her bag. It was evening and everyone was pretty much asleep. The temperature of the land had cooled down, so there was no need to use her hat or her goggles.

Hazel pulled out her cell phone, turned it on, and started texting Nigel. It had been days since she last spoke to him and she knew he would be worried. Not only that, but there were a few things bothering her. Talking to her prehistoric friends is a definite no, so the only other person she could turn to is her mentor.

Hazel: Sorry about the days' wait. We've been traveling through the nights and I could not find any safe times to contact you.

Nigel: Hazel! You had me worried!

Hazel: Yeah, sorry about that. We've been traveling double time. Anyway, we found water in this desert!

Nigel: That's wonderful! You filled up your bottles?

Hazel: Sure did. I did so a few minutes ago. The water's murky, but it's okay!

Hazel: I feel kind of guilty, keeping my rations a secret. I wish I could share them, but then they'll be reliant on me for food and water. I only have enough for myself.

Nigel: I know. I don't like it either but it is for the best. How long until you reach the Nesting Grounds?

Hazel: A few days. Maybe less. Nigel, I've been wondering. Sooner or later, my friends (Aladar, the lemurs, Baylene, Eema, and Flia) will start wondering about who I really am. I don't know how much longer I can hold up.

Nigel: Well, considering that their descendants will not remember what has taken place, I don't see a problem in telling them. And they're your friends. You can tell them anything. I mean, you've spoken to me and the rest of the staff about anything.

Hazel: I know that. But I'm just not sure if they will understand. I mean, whatever term I use from our time might leave them confused. And when I do bring them back, I'm not sure how to tell them they'll be safe.

Nigel: Calm down. When telling them the truth, just simplify your explanation. Don't talk about anything that would confuse them.

Nigel: And whatever you do, do not tell them about your plans on bringing them back.

Hazel: I know. Doing so would cause problems.

Nigel: You're really lucky you know. You get to speak with them.

Hazel: Hehe. Alright. Well, I should let you go now. We may have found water, but that doesn't mean the leader will ease up on us.

Nigel: Okay. From what you've told me about Kron, and to quote you from before, he IS a prick!

Hazel: And stubborn too! He wouldn't let the other members of the herd get a fair share of water! He was even going to push them onwards to the Nesting Grounds! (Before we found the water. The elephants' technique of finding water really helped today.) Anyway, I should stop gossiping.

Nigel: Just be careful around him. It sounds like he would have a one on one with Matilda if it were a bad day. Do you plan to bring him back?

Hazel: I don't want to. But I'm not sure how to prevent him from following. What should I do? What if he does follow?

Nigel: I'm not sure. Just do your best on making sure he doesn't follow you. Kron might wreck Prehistoric Park or injure the other animals. Or worse…he might injure us.

Hazel: Okay. I'll try. But it's still too early to think about that. Right now, the top priority is reaching the Nesting Grounds.

Nigel: Okay. Well, it's late and you need your strength.

Hazel: Alright. Goodnight

Nigel: Goodnight and be careful.

With that said, Hazel turned off her phone, carried her bag, and made her way back to her friends. It took her about five minutes or so to make it back to them. The sun was not fully down yet so there was still light. If it weren't for the dried up lake and the desert nearby, the scenery would make a beautiful subject for a painting. By the time she got close to Baylene's back, Hazel heard a couple of voices nearby. Curious, she peered over from the tail side and saw the source, or two in this case.

A little ways off, but not that far, was Aladar. She did notice the twin juvenile Iguanodons drinking from a newly created puddle. But that sight did not make her widen her eyes in surprise. It was the fact that Aladar and Neera were talking to each other, face to face.

Hazel could not believe what she was seeing. A few days ago, Neera was completely uninterested in this guy, and even gave him a lame nickname. And now, here she was, talking to him. Hazel was not much of an eavesdropper, but she did watch a few dramas in the past. Interested in the situation, she knelt down to one knee, used Baylene's neck as cover in case she needed to hide, and watched the scene. They were a little far off, but she could make out what they were saying. Or at least, most of what they were saying as they were a little quiet.

"I'm Aladar. The Jerkosaurus," Aladar introduced himself with some humor.

"Oh…sorry, about that," Neera replied with an embarrassing smile.

The blue male chuckled at that. "You're probably right."

There was an awkward silence between the two after that statement. Hazel had watched too many dramas to know this kind of moment. Normally one of them would open up with a random question, which would then be followed by some touchy moment. A minute later, Hazel's theory was proven.

"Why did you help that old one?" the lavender female asked.

"What else was I supposed to do? Leave her behind?" was Aladar's answer.

When he said that, Neera looked down in shame. The partner noticed this and thought about something that might answer as to why she was like that.

"Oh…you mean you actually-?"

"Well that happens all the time," Neera immediately followed up with that. "You don't survive if you're not-"

Aladar finished her sentence. "Strong enough."

Hazel rolled her eyes at that part. Classic romance; the boy finishing the girl's statement. Or the other way around. She also understood what was going on, judging from what they were saying. Neera must have learned her brother's ways and considered them to be right. And leaving the weak behind was one of them! But…she still was not like the ruthless Kron. After all, she did help Hazel by convincing Kron to let her join.

"Well…yeah," Neera agreed.

"Is that you talking? Or your brother?"

Neera looked at him seriously, but then turned away from him. She let out a sigh and walked off. Obviously, she was confused at what was right and what was wrong.

"Everything seems so different. I…I don't know what to think anymore," she said as she walked off.

Much to Hazel's dismay, the two began to walk off together. Sure it was romantic and all, but the further they went, the quieter the volume. The human put her hands close to her face (as if she were clawing at it) and silently let out a cry, like a fan desperately wanting to know what happens next. Even though they were now farther away, Hazel could still understand the basic situation.

"Look Neera," Aladar said while walking next to her. "If we watch out for each other, we all stand a chance of getting to your Nesting Grounds."

Neera chuckled at that. "You sound so sure."

"I'm not," was his response. "But it's all I know."

Again, there was an awkward silence between them. Judging from what she was seeing, Hazel would give Aladar a thumbs up for making a move on Neera. And this was without Zini's help! Cheering her up and easing her with the current situation is one way of getting close to her.

"This is so cute," Hazel thought as she watched them. "They're on a date…now if only Aladar would offer Neera something. Ooh I know! Give her a drink!"Unexpectedly, Aladar took the words right out of her mouth.

"So um…oh water," Aladar mentioned and started digging a hole in the ground with his foot. "I'll get you some water."

Hazel lifted an eyebrow up and then rolled her eyes playfully.

"Wow…took the words right out of my mouth. Well…sort of," she said in her mind.

"Can I try?" Neera asked.

"Sure! Just press," the boy instructed.

The human squinted her eyes and saw them press one paw next to their partner's. She then heard them giggle and were about to go in for a drink. Hazel giggled when they accidentally bumped into each other.

"Oops!" Aladar said.

Neera let out a giggle. "Sorry."

"No you. You first," he went.

"Another point for Aladar. Always let the lady go first," Hazel noted proudly.

"One down…" a voice sounded from the tip of Baylene's tail.

Hazel looked in that direction and was surprised to see the lemur family awake. What's more, they were watching the whole date too. They sat there and watched as their adopted son, or brother, or nephew, depending on the lemur, spend some quality time with his unexpected crush.

"And…" Yar, who was the one who made that statement earlier, said as he gestured over to Zini. Zini on the other hand, just woke up and saw what was going on. Hazel kind of felt sorry for the lemur bachelor as his buddy found a girl and he didn't. Still, it's life.

"Well, one down," the elder lemur concluded to save Zini some confusion.

All of them watched as the couple drank water together. Even after having their fill, they went on with their conversation. Hazel could not help but happily sigh. She now had the expression of the audience admiring the sight of a lovely young couple having a good time.

"Ah…Lamour…" she whispered as to not wake up Baylene or attract the lemurs' attention.

This was a romantic moment and Hazel wished she had some popcorn. Not just to quell her hunger, but also to enjoy the sight as it would fit perfectly in a movie. However, like what happened before, all good moments had to be interrupted. A sound had attracted her attention and made her look to the shoreline. When she did, she saw Bruton limping towards Kron, who now stood up from his perch. They were both farther away from her than the dating couple so Hazel could not make out exactly what they were saying. However, the words "Carnotaurs" and "driven them out" were definitely bad news.

While Hazel knew that Carnotaurs were vicious predators, she wondered as to why the Herd would be so afraid of them. From what she read from books and seen on documentaries, they grew to about 13 feet long. And with the larger individuals in the herd, they should not be much of a problem. Whatever the case, if they scared Kron and Bruton, then they were the current threat.

Just then, a roar echoed. The human looked behind her and guessed that the roar came from a Carnotaurus. What's worse, the sound came from the mountains just a few miles away. Hazel started to worry about the safety of this herd and looked back at the leading Iguanodons. The next thing that Kron said was something that Hazel could perfectly hear.

"You led them right to us!" he growled at Bruton. "Maybe you can feed them with your hide!"

Bruton looked away in shame. If getting hurt by a Carnotaur was bad, getting a mouthful from Kron was even worse.

"Move the herd out! Double time!" Kron yelled at him before walking away in a huff.

Bruton, although feeling shameful that he pissed off his superior, did what he was told. He bellowed as loud as he could. The herd jolted awake and started moving out right after Kron bellowed. Seeing this, and wanting to know what was really going on, Hazel ran over to that ledge to the leader.

The herd was moving fast and they did not even know what was going on. Luckily, the human's main focus was on Kron, who was standing on the hilltop watching the herd pass by. Just when Hazel was about to climb the ledge to get to him, she heard the familiar flap of wings come toward her. She turned around, and once again saw Flia.

"Get on!" she ordered her.

Hazel complied to that and climbed on to her back. When she did, the Pteranodon took off. At first, they were flying towards the main basin, then Flia made a sharp turn and flew towards the leader. It only took a minute or so until she landed close to him. Kron looked down to his left side and saw his scouts walk to him. Flia was about to say something but was interrupted by another voice.

"Kron!" a voice shouted.

All turned towards the far left and saw Neera and Aladar walk up to the base of the ledge. Like Kron, well…he did not exactly show it, they were worried about the situation.

"What's going on?" his sister asked.

"Carnotaurs! If we don't keep moving, they'll catch up to us," he explained.

"But…the others in the back! They'll never make it!" Aladar reasoned.

"They'll slow down the predators!" Kron retorted.

At that moment, Flia and Hazel gasped. They looked at each other and shared worried expressions. Their friends were obviously too slow and weak to fend off the Carnotaurs. There was no way they would survive alone!

"You can't sacrifice them like this!" Aladar shot back.

And Hazel agreed with him. She marched up to Kron, fists balled, teeth clenched, and rage on her face. How could Kron do this to them? To her friends!? No, not just her friends, anyone! Hazel tolerated his leadership skills for nearly two weeks and she has had it! Boss or not, this guy has no right to treat them like this.

"I've just about had it with this guy! I don't care about survival of the fittest. This is just wrong!" Hazel screamed in her mind.

"Kron!" she called to him. He looked down and stared into those furious eyes. "He's right! They're slow and vulnerable! We can't just leave them behind!"

"Yes we can! Doing so will increase our chances of survival!" he defended his belief.

Hazel shot glares at him again. "Survival for the herd, or survival for you?"

Flia looked at her in shock and told her to stop. "Hazel be quiet!"

For the first time during this trip, the human ignored her advice. The purple dinosaur turned his body towards her and stared as if she were an ant. He put one foot down, showing his anger.

"You dare question my authority!?"

"Yes I dare!" she screamed back at him. "You don't have any sympathy for those who fall behind and die! All you care about is yourself! What kind of a leader are you?"

"Keep talking that way and I will make you an easy target to the predators!" Kron threatened.

"Go ahead! Do it! You selfish bastard, you're no leader and you don't deserve to be one!"

Right when she said that, Hazel knew she had gone too far. She only had a second to reflect on what she had just said. And only one second. Kron reared back on his hind legs and prepared to smash her to the ground. Hazel readied herself to dodge the attack when shockingly, Flia gets in front of her. The pterosaur used on of her wings to push her back and the girl landed on her butt. She heard a cry of pain and opened her eyes. When she did, she saw Kron pinning the helpless Flia on the ground. There she was, sprawled on her stomach and shrieking in pain.

"Oh my god! Flia!" Hazel screamed.

The human was about to draw her sword and slash at him when she heard another dinosaur run up to the ledge. She turned around and saw Aladar scream down at the herd. The herd slowed their pace and looked up at him so that they would hear what he would say.

"Hold it! That could be you back there! Or you!"

The furious Kron growled and stormed up to Aladar. Like what he did to his sky scout, he pinned the rookie down. Hazel saw this chance and ran to Flia's side. While she helped her up, she watched the entire event take place.

"If you ever interfere again," Kron threatened him. "I'll kill you!"

Aladar breathed in horror as the ruthless leader glared into his soul. Once he released him and started to walk away, Neera walked over to him and was about to help him up. Her brother turned and ran up to her.

"Stay away from him!" he shouted and pushed her away. His action made her walk alongside him and away from Aladar. The blue Iguanodon recovered and was about to attack him when the female told him no.

"Aladar no!" Neera told him, making him stop.

"You just…just go! I'll be okay!" she said as she walked away.

Aladar shook his head in frustration before agreeing with Neera. He turned around and rushed back to his friends. Back there, Eema, Baylene, and Url just woke up and saw the back of the herd march out of the lake.

While that happened, Hazel managed to help Flia get away from the area. They were still on the plateau and were a few feet away from the recent leader threat. Hazel checked around her partner's hairless body for any signs of broken bones or other injuries.

"Flia, I'm so sorry!" Hazel apologized, still horrified by what happened.

"It's alright," Flia reasoned with her, with some strain in her voice.

Hazel checked around her body one last time and saw that there were no serious injuries. The only sore spot she noted from Flia was a huge area on her back, which was where she was struck. Other than that, no limbs or bones were broken.

"You're safe…that's all that matters. And I've been through worse before."

The human watched her partner flap her wings twice to check for any pain. The Pteranodon flapped her wings smoothly, which meant her most important limbs were fine. When she finished, a sense of fear was etched on her face as she stared at her right. Hazel noticed and looked too, fear etching her face as well. Coming up to them was an angry Kron and a worried Neera.

"Human," Kron stopped and glared down at Hazel. "Be happy in the knowledge that I spared your life. For questioning my leadership, you are exiled from the herd and stripped of your position!"

At that moment, Hazel did not care. She continued to stare into those heartless, steel-blue eyes with fury. The dinosaur did the same and snorted at her. He then looked at Flia and gave her a glare too. Neera stepped forward and was about to talk to them when her brother pushed her to the side like before. The female could not do anything to help except by giving them an apologetic look. Once they were away, Hazel turned to Flia, who was recovering from the confrontation.

"Flia, you must go with them," Hazel told her.

When she said that, the scout shook her head in defiance. "No, I will not leave you behind."

"Don't worry about me. I'll stay with the others. Right now, the herd needs a scout in the air," the human reasoned with her.

Flia shook her head again. She did not want to leave her friend alone. Even though she said she would stay with their friends, she knew that she would still be in danger. Without anyone to watch out for them in the sky, their chances of survival are low.

"Hazel!" she tried to reason again.

The human kept a straight face at her. "I said go!"

After a moment of silence, and shock from Flia, Hazel walks up to her and strokes her beak. Her expression turned from being stern to being concerned.

"I'll be fine. We'll meet at the Nesting Grounds. I promise," she told her.

The flying reptile closed her eyes and inhaled. They stood there together for a few minutes. Hazel continued to stroke her beak to calm her nerves. Afterwards, the pterosaur backed up and turned her back to the human. They gave each other one last look, eyes filled with resolve, before parting ways. Flia took off to the skies and looked behind her one last time at the creature she called friend.

"Hazel, please be careful," she thought as she flew towards the herd, which was now out of the lake area.

Hazel walked on until she was at the edge of the hill. She looked over to the left side of the lake and saw her friends slowly walking together. The human took a deep breath and collected her thoughts.

"Well this was an eventful day. First we find water, I enjoy a romantic scene which would fit perfectly in a Shakespearean play, my boss fires me for questioning his leadership skills, and now my friends and I are left behind. Could this situation get any worse?"

She walked down the slope to join her friends. Hazel watched too many movies and TV shows to know that when someone says that, things always get worse. And she knew that she was right.

And voila! Chapter 7. Man that was a doozy. Took me nearly two days (including breaks, meals, and sleep) to finish this. When Hazel gets back (if she ever gets back…), Nigel and the others are definitely going to flip. Except for the part where she talks to them of course. She's well aware of the promise she made to Nigel. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter and stay tuned for Chapter 8.