Category: Land before Time
Rating: T
Couples: hints of Canon-ones
Warnings: BIG AU, Blood, Character Death, Heavy Sci-fi
Chapter: 10
Copyright: © characters and places by United Pictures; © Plot and OC by me
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She moaned softly in pain, her chest heaving with the desperate gulps of air she was taking in. Her entire body hurt as if she had just rolled down a mountain-side after a Sharptooth-battle. A strange feeling covered most of her skin, like she had walked into a massive eight-legged-crawler's web. Only neither of those things could have happened since she was still trapped in the strange white cavern where there were neither eight-legged-crawlers nor mountain-sides.
The old Longneck opened her eyes, looking around blearily. The strange two-legged creature stood beside the rise she was laying on, looking at her with fire in his eyes. What had he done to her? Why had it hurt so much?
Her head, normally the easiest part of her body to move, but now near impossible as well, turned more, allowing her to look at her body.
She did not see the interest in the human's face when her eyes filled with horror at what they saw: her entire body – all imposing 80 feet of it, though she did not know said measurement – was covered in an intricate web of thin shining lines. The Web had successfully taken hold, connecting not only to her every muscle, but also to her spine with surprising ease.
"How are you feeling?" The voice was that of a male, soft and well-spoken, it reminded her of Ducky's father a bit. She turned her head to its' origin, realizing that she was still the only Dinosaur in the room. Instead it had come from the two-legged creature who seemed a bit too eager for her to answer.
"What… did you do to me?" She counter-asked, eyes narrowing at the shock in his face. He recovered surprisingly quickly, unlike the others in the room.
"I merely insured we could talk to one another." He climbed back on the rise, his loose skin shifting around his form as he did so. "Forgive me for making it hurt."
"Honestly? This is the least painful thing you did." Her voice turned angry, the humans hearing under the translation offered by their web the snarls of the reptile-female.
"That is understandable." He offered, reaching with his hand towards her.
"Don't touch me." It was a roar this time, nearly drowning out the translation as her anger gave her new strength.
"Let me explain." He soothed, clearly trying to calm the old female down. "Please."
Somewhere, in a far corner of her mind she remembered that she had always been calm and had indeed been the only one that could reign in her husband's temper the moment it WOULD finally blow. Now she drew from that calm, closing her eyes briefly.
When they opened again, he could not look away, captured in their powerful gaze. Despite most people stating that he – Homo Sapiens, the species that created Time Travel – was far, far above her – Apatosaurus louisae, merely one of the most well-known sauropods to ever be discovered – he found that she was in charge of their conversation.
He merely talked to her, the expression on her face leaving him feeling like a little child that had been caught with his hand in the cookie-jar. She did not speak much herself, but he knew almost instinctively that she was absorbing his every word.
The other scientists moved around them in silence, looking in awe upon the dinosaur whose mental capabilities seemed to be on par with their own, despite much evidence to the contrary before this day.
"Command: release the chains." A gamble, even more so than giving her the web had been. The computer that could control every aspect in the facility did not bother which such details and merely did as told. The thick, pure steel chains retracted into the walls, leaving the female dinosaur with only her weakness as restraining factor from destroying everything in sight.
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He understood little of the argument going on in front of him, all participants speaking Leafeater, a tongue he had never learned safe some odd words here and there.
His massive form rested on the ground, finally unable to move even a single step after managing to reach the Valley. His son was curled up at his side, having fallen asleep after his wounds had been treated.
And now the residents were arguing about his presence, or so he presumed. It was basically the only thing that made sense…
Chomper's father watched as the uncaring Longneck clashed verbally with the hotheaded Threehorn – wasn't that the one that had toppled him back when Chomper's egg had been stolen? – his voice even to the Sharptooth's ear cruel and cold. Had his wife's loss really hit the old one this hard?
He watched them with lidded eyes, curling around his son even as the argument carried on.
The atmosphere was pushing him down, in a matter of speaking. It was thick and loaded, as if something was just waiting to burst forth. He imagined that this was how Leafeaters felt when they had to travel through Sharpteeth-territory: something, just waiting beyond the next bush. Waiting… Preparing… Ready to strike at full force the moment your attention was elsewhere.