Chapter 6: Into the Shadow
Ducky whipped around. Standing behind her was Thim.
"Please, sir, we aren't trying to cause you any trouble, no no no."
Thim smiled, but the gesture held no happiness. "I know. Actually, I must apologize for the trouble we've caused you. It was only a matter of time before you found out how we repay the Sharpteeth for protecting us."
"But offering up your own lives," Terra said, "why?"
The Fastrunner let out a deep sigh. "Three seasons ago, this valley was nothing like the way you see it now. My fellow Fastrunners, numbering easily in the thousands and I had been traveling for a long time across the Mysterious Beyond, looking for a place to call home. We found the Highmountains when we had just about given up hope. Though the journey up here through the Sharptooth-filled forest was difficult, my herd pulled through, and we settled here. It was a paradise, completely isolated, and food was plentiful. We all lived happily until one fateful night. I remember it well, because I was responsible for standing as lookout near the cave. A single Sharptooth, it seemed, had learned of our location and decided that, trapped as we were, picking us off in this valley would be easy."
"The Dark-Dweller," Fyn said softly.
Thim nodded. "Yes, it was what we now call the Dark-Dweller. It came through the cave, and we were powerless to stop it. Without any warning whatsoever, it entered our place of sanctuary and ravaged it. Many of us fell that night to its jaws. Eventually, only a thousand or less of us were left, forced to the river, stuck there for days on end. Some of us tried to cross it , but another Sharptooth lay in wait: The River-Dweller. It snapped up those of us who tried crossing effortlessly. Eventually, we came to realize that the Sharpteeth were working together, strange as it may seem. One night, when my herd and I couldn't stand it any longer, I met the Dark-Dweller on my own terms, alone. A few of us, including myself, are still gifted with the Sharptooth language, and I managed to convince the Sharptooth to cease his attack. The Dark-Dweller only asked for one thing in return: that we provide the River-Dweller and himself with one of our own for nourishment when they called for it. At first, it was hard to do, but it eventually became routine to offer one of us up. They never took much, only one every few days, but recently, their demands have increased. That is why I finally decided to ask for help."
He lowered his head. The story had been painful for him.
"Wait," Littlefoot said, "if the only way out of here is through the cave or the river, then how did you escape?"
"The river," Thim said. "You saw only a few of us in the Great Valley. In reality, twice that number left, but even though we waited for the dark of night, the River-Dweller took its share."
"But how did you escape?"
"We followed the river. It flows down a steep canyon, and we eventually crossed to the other side and forced our way up and out of the rocks. Never in my life would I want to repeat an experience like that." He shivered. "We came to the Great Valley because it was the closest location we knew of that would be guaranteed to have Leaf Eaters who might help us."
"Why would how close we are matter?" Cera asked.
"If either the River-Dweller or Dark-Dweller noticed our numbers thinned for an extended period of time, I shudder to think of what would happen to the rest of my herd. We had to get back as soon as possible."
Terra was seething. "So it's oppression, then."
"I beg your pardon?" Thim said.
"This situation you're in. It's oppression, plain and simple. The Sharpteeth are stronger, and they know it, so they use their power to force you to bend to their will. It's sick, it's cowardly, and it's not how Sharpteeth were meant to live. I hate it."
"As do we all," Thim said. "Now I must ask, how do you children plan to stop the Sharpteeth?"
"Well," Littlefoot said, "that's going to take some work, but we'll let you know tomorrow."
"Understood," Thim nodded. He began to walk away, then turned back. "If there's anything you need-"
"Don't worry," Littlefoot said, "we'll ask if we have to."
Thim nodded and disappeared into the darkness. Littlefoot looked back at the river.
"Well, we've seen what one of these Sharpteeth can do. Let's go have a look at the other."
"The Dark-Dweller?" Chomper asked, "have you lost your mind, Littlefoot?"
"He's right," Fyn said, "we need to know what we're up against."
"Oh no," Cera said, "count me out."
"Come on, Cera," Ducky said, "you have done this kind of thing before."
"No way."
...
Moments later, Cera found herself at the entrance to the Dark-Dweller's cave with her friends.
"Why do I let you guys talk me into these things?"
"Maybe because you secretly like doing the things you don't like," Ruby said.
Cera let out a low "hrmph" and walked over to Littlefoot.
"What's the plan, smarty-egg?"
Littlefoot looked back at Cera; he'd just been discussing the plan with Terra.
"Terra's going to try to talk to the Sharptooth, and see if we can get him to show himself. If we're lucky enough to talk to him, maybe we can convince him to leave. Chomper will be our translator."
"I still think this is a bad idea, but let's give it a try," Cera groaned.
"That's the spirit," Fyn said, coming up behind Cera and stopping at the cave's entrance. "Right, who goes in first?"
"Me," Terra said, pushing Fyn aside. Fyn could tell that it was a forceful gesture, but not necessarily meant as an attack. He gave Terra the benefit of doubt, and with the others, followed her in.
Inside, the cave was cool, and wind whistled eerily through it. Terra heard the steady drip of water falling to the floor. So far, everything was quiet. There was definitely the scent of another Sharptooth in here, but it was unfamiliar. She stopped suddenly.
"Let's try from here," she whispered. Littlefoot nodded and Chomper came forward. The others backed up.
"Here we go," Terra said. She began, transitioning easily into her natural language.
"Dark-Dweller, I am a fellow Sharptooth. I demand you show yourself."
No answer. Behind, Chomper was translating for everyone else. Terra tried again, this time louder.
"Dark-Dweller, I wish to see you. I, a fellow Sharptooth, call you now!"
This time, something happened. Farther into the cave, a deep, growling hiss sounded. Then, a low, dangerously soft voice spoke.
"Who wishes to see me? Is it time for another meal?"
Terra was taken aback briefly. The voice possessed power, and it worried her, especially with what she was about to say next.
"Hardly. I am a challenger. I wish to meet you to fight for this territory."
The growl was louder, now. "You dare? By the smell of you, you are but a young Sharptooth. I will give you one chance to walk away. After that, I will finish you, and I will enjoy it."
"I doubt that, but since I'm generous, I'll give you one chance to leave before any of this gets out of claw." Suddenly, everything went completely silent. Then, almost at a whisper, the growl came once more. No words were spoken this time, however. This was the sound of a large Sharptooth on the hunt.
"Um, guys," Chomper said, "maybe we could have phrased that a bit better."
"Well, it's a bit late for that," Cera said, glaring at Littlefoot. "What now?"
Littlefoot glanced around. He noticed a cluster of rocks on the right. They would work for cover, if it came to that. Suddenly, the ground began to shake.
Thump, thump.
"Do you hear that?" Cera asked. Ruby, straining to hear, nodded. The sound came again, this time louder.
Thump, thump.
"He's coming," Fyn said in awe, "the Dark-Dweller's coming." He looked towards the rocks. "Time to get to cover," he said to Littlefoot.
Thump, thump.
Littlefoot nodded, and the dinosaurs dove for the safety of the rocks.
Thump, thump.
Suddenly, the Dark-Dweller was revealed in all of his terrible glory. It stood tall, perhaps even as tall as Chomper's parents, but its height wasn't what made it terrifying. It's mouth was huge, longer than any other Sharptooth the gang had ever seen, except perhaps those of the Sail-Teeth that had attacked Fyn's old home, and this Sharptooth's mouth was muscular, too.
Fyn gulped when he saw the large teeth lining the massive jaws: large, sharp teeth meant for only one thing: ending the life of another dinosaur as effortlessly as possible. The Sharptooth was sniffing around now, looking for his challenger. Slowly, it began to move towards the gang. Fyn noticed a small tunnel nearby. They could reach it if they sprinted.
"Littlefoot," he whispered, nudging his friend and nodding towards the tunnel, "we need to try to reach that, or that Sharptooth will be on top of us."
Littlefoot nodded, and relayed the plan to the others. Fyn saw Cera completely flip when Littlefoot told her, but she seemed ready anyway.
"Right," Littlefoot said to the others, "now when I say-"
A thunderous roar ripped through the cavern. The Sharptooth had spotted them!
"Go!" Littlefoot yelled, and he and the friends bolted for the small hole in the cave wall. Fyn sprinted until he felt his lungs would just cease to work, and made it into the tunnel just in time. The Sharptooth's jaws forced themselves into the tiny opening, snarling and snapping, and giving everyone a great view of its numerous teeth. Its breath reeked, too. Fyn recoiled from the stench, easily worse than anything the Bubbling Goo back home could produce. Finally, the Sharptooth gave up, let out a roar of frustration, and retreated. The gang waited until they were sure it was gone, then left their hiding spot.
"So that's the Dark-Dweller," Cera said pessimistically, "great. We're all dead."
"Don't say anything yet, Cera," Ruby said, "It's too early to say anything."
"Ruby's right," Littlefoot said, "we'll think of something. Everyone has a weakness."
"So who do we get rid of first?" Fyn asked.
"I think we should focus on the Water-Dweller," Littlefoot said as they rounded a corner and began to see the Night Circle's light again. The cave opening was just ahead, and the gang spontaneously broke into a run. They were ready to be out of this deathtrap. Then Terra, who was in the lead, got a good look at who was waiting for them outside.
"Oh no," she said, "we've got company."
Littlefoot looked towards the entrance and saw what Terra had seen. Standing in front of the entrance, and looking very menacing, was a pack of Fastrunners, gathered around Orn. Littlefoot remembered Thim's deputy, and his impression of him. It seemed he had been right to dislike him. The blue Fastrunner looked hard at Terra, and smirked dangerously.
"Welcome back," he said as she stepped out of the cave, "we've been expecting you... Twobreed."
Now presenting the last of our Sharpteeth to be introduced in this story: Charcharodontasaurus. I went looking for unique dinosaurs to put in here and settled on this one. It definitely held the potential to be just as ferocious as T-Rex, and those jaws... Anyway, time for a song-inspiration-notification! Again, from Michael Giacchino's The Lost World album, I set the Dark-Dweller's entrance to a song entitled The King's Lair. The song starts out with eerie strings and rumbling brass; perfect, I think, for this terror's introduction.
A couple more things that I should have mentioned earlier in response to a couple of questions I've been asked: first, this story is set right after the TV series, so the characters are still kids, and second, Terra is an Allosaurus/Tyrannosaurus hybrid (if you want more information on her, look her up on the "sign up for OCs" page on the "Great Valley Roleplay" forum). Anyway, that's all for today. Until next time!