DaPPA: The Long Night of Winter

by Darksage95

Nigel chose Hazel as his heir for a reason. Now, her final test has come. With the Time Poles shut down for a 2 year expansion, she must lead the park in a temporary facility in the distant past while Nigel stays behind. Bonds and loyalties are tested as she, her family, her future team, and a homeless herd of Pachyrhinosaurus must survive an unexpected winter. Has natural gore

21. The Woods Where It Happens

While the park was secluded inside a valley that had a natural barrier against outside forces, it was not immune to infiltrators on the inside. Mainly, small predators that were able to slip into the territory effectively. This was the case for a certain group of Troodons that found it easy to observe day to day life in Temporary Park.

Five blue and grey feathered Troodons were situated in one part of the valley, observing the goings on in this new setting. Neither of them knew what to make of these things. The odd things started months ago, when these strange bipeds with no scales, tails, and claws just decided to build things in this valley. Loud noises kept ringing in their heads every time they tried to come in for a closer look. So much that they decided to stay away for a while.

When next they returned, there were huge wooden structures that surrounded those strange caves inside. And rather than being deserted, creatures that were familiar and unfamiliar came to take up residence. It was then that they discovered they were able to go passed the boundary that kept them away.

These five were part of a pack of twelve, and were scouting for the day. And they had been visiting ever since these new creatures first appeared in the valley. Curiosity was always dominant in their minds.

If only there was a way to get into that place easily AND into those strange caves that were always locked up. The new delectable smells in the air were simply irresistible. Neither of them wanted to attract any unwanted attention.

While most would think Troodons are adapted for a predatory lifestyle, they are actually opportunistic omnivores. Seeds, nuts, and fruits were essential in their diets, along with smaller animals and dinosaurs. The plants they relied on most of the year were dying out, and they would need to either scavenge for food or hunt. But neither of them could resist the possible treasures inside this strange alcove.

And thinking of them now was making them hungry.

Their observations for the day were informative to say the least. They watched the two herds mingling with each other in the other part of the valley, the weird bipeds going about on their strange contraptions, and those other bipeds being driven mercilessly by that four-legged herbivore around the area. If there was anything they could take back to their leader, it was that there were more things neither of them could fathom.

The group of three females and two males retreated away. They hopped over rocks, ducked under logs, and sprinted passed shrubs and trees, all while making their way further and further away from the park, back to where the rest of their pack resided.

Their small size and nimble movements allowed them to traverse the forest obstacles with relative ease. As they did this, they discussed their findings amongst themselves with relative excitement.

"Did you see those huge long neck things?" said one of the males on the far right.

"I've never seen anything so big!"

"Pfft, those things?" the leading male snorted. "What about those smells? I swear, something fresh and juicy just keeps hitting my nose. They keep coming from that one odd cave where those puffs of whatever those are keep going up. I tell you, we need to go and investigate that."

"We can't!" went one of the females. "Remember the last time we ventured there? We couldn't get into those things! There's no way in them!"

That pale female was supported by her sister, who was running alongside her. "And with those huge predators there? I don't think we'll be able to get too close with them always roaming."

"We don't need to worry about raiding those caves," remarked the leading male. "Not yet. Let's just focus on getting at those leaf eaters there. There's so many of them! If we plan it right, we could snag a few of them. We'll be able to last this whole winter without a problem."

"Ooh but let's go check out the inside first!" one of the females pointed out excitedly. "I wonder if they have some good food in there."

"Let's report our findings to our leader first."

**CRASH**

The Troodons screeched when a huge brown shape rushed in from their left. The large trees had provided so much cover for this huge predator that neither of them could see it coming. And their conversation had distracted them from sniffing out the smell of decay wafting from its maw.

The five of them scattered in different directions, all trying to escape the destructive exploits of the tyrannosaur. Soon, the one was joined by three more as they joined in on the miniature feast.

Every lunge and swipe, they dodged. Every opening, they tried to get to escape. But their exits were always cut off by a tail or a looming head. It all happened so fast for them.

Only when the four giant predators were ambushed by five large creatures did the Troodons manage to escape. Neither of them was wounded, but they were shaken. All they wanted to do was flee. As they did, they left behind the gruesome scene behind them.

Had they bothered to look back, they would have seen their saviors have none of those feathers those attackers had. And one of them, in contrast to the teal, green, red, and brown, was colored blue. The air that once had the roars of the invading tyrannosaurs was replaced by the sounds of crunching bone and ripping flesh.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The roars of the skirmish in the other side of the valley were a bit disturbing to those who could hear it. But it was so far out and dark for anyone to make out what really happened. All it did was instill some fear in the inhabitants in the valley on what they really were. The rex twins and their new companion were the exceptions. They were too busy with helping on bringing the Anchiceratops carcass parts to Aurora's home.

The ceratopsian corpse was a little heavier than expected, but the Twins had each other for support. Matilda held onto the nape with her jaws while her brother held onto the base of the tail. The female rex made sure to keep the head up to prevent any blood from dripping; wouldn't want anyone else to find a bloody trail leading to this stranger's home.

The only other thing that helped them keep going were the cries of the smaller creatures that were scurrying away at their wake. This inflated their egos a bit, making them look stronger and fiercer.

While they were walking in the more forested portions of the valley, the Twins knew they were traveling further away from Temporary Park. They did sneak their way around the main part of the park through the forest until they got to the exit. With it being nighttime, they were able to sneak away undetected from the Alaskan Pachyrhinosaurus herd. If they saw them sneaking out with a strange rex, there may be confusion and pandemonium; relations between the park and that herd were still shaky.

When they exited that part of the valley, the trio continued to "hug" the valley wall for another hour; it was a mountain range that provided some additional protection to this little sanctuary. The trees slowly gave way into rocks, until the trio came across a cave within a mountain wall.

Terrence and Matilda's keen sense of smell picked up the scent of decay. Bones and bits of rotting flesh came from the cave. Along with that came another scent; Aurora's scent, along with a mix of others.

Sleeping outside of the cave, curled up like a cat, was another Tyrannosaurus Rex.

This one was smaller, perhaps younger than Aurora. The plumage this one sported was similar to the female Alaskan rex, except there were a few white feathers in some parts of the body. And from the musculature of this individual, this one appeared to be male.

"Borealis!" Aurora cried out at the sleeping rex, dropping the flesh in her jaws. "What part of 'guarding our den' did you not understand? No sleeping on the job!"

The young rex jolted awake, followed by a cat-like yawn. His razor-sharp teeth that were the size of bananas were dripping with columns of saliva before they were once again covered by his reptilian jaw.

"Aw come on, sis," he drearily responded. "Can't I get a bit of shut eye? I'm tired!"

"Do that and some other interloper will take you out in your sleep. Now look alive, we've got guests."

One of his blue eyes slowly opened, staring at his huffing sister. "Guests?"

The elder sister turned around to the Twins. She gestured at them to drop the carcass, which landed on the ground with a flop. She then grabbed at the neck and started to drag the corpse into the cave, while revealing the Twins to a now surprised Borealis.

From what they could tell, he was really analyzing them now; from how full they looked, to how big they were, and their lack of feathers. At first, he stared at Terrence with a hint of curiosity, but then his eyes fell on Matilda. He became fully intrigued with her.

Matilda was a bit put off by how he was looking at her. Why was he staring at her?

Sure, she didn't have those feathers and the park has done well to help with her constitution, but what else would make him so interested? Maybe it was how she smelled? That would probably make sense. She probably smelled like a mix of every single Resident in the park with a dash of human. Maybe that's what it was.

The younger male quickly got up and straightened himself. "Uh...hi there! I haven't seen you two before. You from around here?"

The teen rexes cast a nervous glance at each other. While they were glad to be meeting others of their kind, they were a little leery about revealing their upbringing. Telling these strangers about Prehistoric Park would be fantastical to them. It could spiral into chaos if they really found out the truth. Their friends back at home could be in danger.

Not wanting to cause any trouble, they responded with anonymity.

"No, no we're not," said Terrence.

"We're from really far away," his sister added.

Aurora came up to her brother after she dropped the carcass pieces in the back of the cave, next to an old carcass of a hadrosaur that was mostly bones. "This is Terrence and his sister, Matilda. They're a couple of other rexes I found during my hunt. They claim to be expert hunters."

Borealis nodded with a bit of understanding, though keeping an air of suspicion. "Huh...interesting. Aren't you two cold?"

The young male twin shook his head. "Well, we're not used to cold, but it doesn't bother us too much."

"Wow, you two must be really strong to take this weather. Especially since you two are...well...like that," he indirectly pointed out to their appearances. This however, upset Aurora and caused her to roar disapprovingly to the younger rex, much to his annoyance.

"Idiot!" she berated. "You want to get another brutal lecture from Dad? Manners!"

Her brother grimaced at his rudeness. He looked back at the twins with an apologetic gaze. "Sorry, I didn't mean to say that."

"Eh, don't worry about it," Terrence dismissed the impoliteness casually. "You were curious. Plus, I've made my own mistakes too like that so I know where you're coming from. Now, if it were more insulting, then we might bite," he chuckled playfully.

This time, it was Matilda's turn to scold her own sibling. His overall reaction was akin to that of the Alaskan male's. "Terrence!"

"What?"

She rolled her eyes at him. Before she could have her turn at scolding her sibling,

Aurora had alerted them to something a bit more pressing.

"Oh, looks like Mom and Dad are back."

When the Twins quickly looked back at where Aurora was gesturing, their excitement turned into intimidation when they noticed two large hunters coming towards them.

Terrence and Matilda had heard of stories of how their kind was one of the most terrifying creatures to have ever walked the Earth of all time, courtesy of the humans they were raised with. And that was supported by their short time with their mother AND their single encounter with the very rex that killed her while they were younglings.

They may be able to stand up to something as big as Diablo, but having to encounter actual adult rexes was still an intimidating experience. One wrong move and they'll be dead in an instant.

Terrence and Matilda could not match these two in terms of size; the Twins were shorter than them, meaning they had a bit more growing to do. The larger one, which they could see was male, sported a coat of brown features on most of his body, except for his feet, arms, and his face. The tip of his tail and head had some white plumage in contrast to the rest of his body, much like that of a bald eagle or a lion's mane. The female, who was slightly smaller and leaner, was colored in stark, earthy browns and red and lacked the white plumage.

The Twins became even more unnerved when they took notice of the carcasses they had in their jaws; two dead brown-feathered tyrannosaurs with long gashes along their bodies and their lifeless eyes stared back at them. As the two of them did their best to keep themselves composed (they did not want to embarrass themselves in front of the first adult rexes they've seen in a long time) Aurora and Borealis excitedly came up to greet the newcomers.

"Hi Mom! Hi Dad!" Borealis greeted.

"Awesome!" Aurora cheered as she inspected each corpse with interest. "You brought in some kills; big ones too! We're going to eat good for the next three days!"

"Where did you find them?" her brother added as he inspected their dead kin.

Surprisingly, he showed no shock or remorse that they were even like them.

"Wait, what exactly are these?"

The large male dropped the prey with a crash and a flop. Its tongue rolled out while it stared up into blank space before becoming still.

"Albertosaurus," replied the father with a deep rumble like thunder. "There were several of them stalking a bit of a ways from the valley."

His mate replied with an equally deep, yet feminine and fierce, tone after dropping her prey. "We knew they would be problematic in large groups, so we had to pick out whichever ones were too far out. And that is a valuable lesson you two should know."

"It took us a couple of tries though," their father turned his left side to them to show four gashes down his ribs; the blood was already drying into a deep, chunky red.

He also had faded scratches he obtained over the years from past bouts. And like him, his mate had them too. "But they couldn't handle anything that was bigger than them."

"Well now you two have a couple more marks to add to your hides," the young female joked with a bit of a snicker. "But I never knew there were more like us close by. Any idea why they're here?"

Unfortunately, neither of them had a valid answer to that.

"We don't know," went her father. "Probably because they're attracted to the huge number of herbivores around. Hopefully they know better to only kill what they need."

Before their conversation could go any further, all eyes fell on the prehistoric elephants in the room. Or more specifically, the foreign rexes watching the whole conversation. Their interest was replaced by startled expressions.

"Trespassers!" the huge male roared.

His mate followed with a roar of her own. A menacing hiss followed as she rushed up to tear them apart for intruding. Terrence and Matilda, shocked by this behavior, immediately went on the defensive. The two of them roared as well and prepared to attack.

It should have been common sense. The first thing adults would do in order to defend their territory AND their family would be to attack. Now they're paying for it with their lives.

It was about to turn into a bloodbath when something came between the two sides. The mother rex backed away in surprise when she saw her daughter blocking her way. The Twins could only watch as their new friend defended them.

"Wait! Don't hurt them!"

Both parents staggered back at the sudden move their daughter made. Her mother still hissed defensively while her father only eyed the Twins with suspicion.

"Aurora? What is going on? Who are these two?" the older female asked her eldest.

While Aurora kept her guard up, she replied with complete honesty. "I made a couple of friends today. They helped me bring in the third share of our meals here," she said while gesturing over at the Anchiceratops corpse she brought in.

Her parents looked at the dead ceratopsian before gazing back at the Twin rexes. While her father remained silent, her mother continued her investigation.

"Who are you?" she asked aggressively.

Out of the Twins, it was Matilda who was the one to bravely answer her. "My name's Matilda and this is my brother, Terrence. We were just in the area exploring when we ran into your daughter."

"Why did you help her?" she demanded. "Is it because you wanted to steal our food or eliminate your competition?"

This time, it was Terrence's turn to answer. "Neither. We just wanted to help her with bringing her food."

"That and we've never seen anyone like...well anyone like you guys before," his sister supported.

The wary female continued to stare them down, all the while baring her teeth and thinking of snapping their necks. But as she did, her mate slowly marched up to them. His towering stature caused the two featherless rexes to become even more intimidated. He too bore an air of caution, but one that was more controlled than his angry mate.

When he stopped before them, he leaned down and started to circle around them, all the while giving them a few whiffs. The Twins tried to not freak out too much. This was one of the first things a predator would do when inspecting a newcomer. As he sniffed them, they could hear him muttering words like "grass-chewer" and "odd-smelling". The both of them gulped; they smelled like their friends in the park. They hoped he would not prod into why they smelled that way.

Thankfully, it did not come to that. The huge male stopped in front of them and put on a calmer expression.

"I am Tundrous," he introduced before gesturing over to his slowly simmering mate, "And this is my mate, Sitka. Where do you two come from?"

"They said they're from far out, but they wouldn't say where," Aurora mentioned.

"Hm..." the hulking Tundrous scrutinized the two, making them uneasy, "Did you come here with anyone? A hunting group?"

Both Terrence and Matilda shook their heads. At least they could be honest about that.

"It's just us," Terrence said.

Aurora and Borealis' father took a step back while letting out a long sigh. His expression softened where it did not show a killer ready to be let loose. "Very well. You haven't attacked out children, so I suppose you are trustworthy. But you two look like you've been keeping yourselves well-fed," he pointed out how fit they looked.

"That's exactly what I was thinking!" his daughter agreed, only to be shushed by her mother.

"Tell me, does the place you come from have food in abundance?"

The adolescent Prehistoric Park rexes cast nervous glances to each other. Their need to protect their little secret dominated their thoughts, though they were not wrong on that part regarding the food, even though they were practically being fed.

"Oh yeah!" Matilda saved face. "Yeah, there's a ton of food where we're from."

The feathered adolescent female jumped excitedly at her parents, much to their surprise. "Mom, Dad, let's have them join us in our hunt!"

Terrence and Matilda just gawked at her. Borealis remained silent, but they could clearly see one of his eyes twitching. Them? Go on a hunt? But neither of them had ever hunted with a group of rexes before! And there really wasn't a need to hunt because they were being cared for in the park. Their excursions outside of the park were just to stretch their legs and get a feel of the place.

As young rexes grow, they must learn how to hunt by observing their parents. Eventually, they would hunt alongside their families for a time before they decide on whether they want to leave and go create their own legacies or stay with them.

Neither of which the Twins had ever gone through.

Now they have a chance to actually hunt with other rexes. This was a sound idea; it was a way for them to get in touch with their roots.

Well, to say they were never taught to hunt would be an understatement. They did get some tutoring in some way...courtesy of the keepers in the park. But to the eyes of any other predator, it would be VERY unconventional. And they never had a chance to try out that technique. Given the circumstances, now would be a good a time as any to hunt with others of their kind.

"If where they're from has a lot of food, then they know how to hunt! If we have two more in our group, it'll be a lot faster to get food for tonight," Aurora added.

"Wait, tonight?" Matilda inquired. "But what about the food you brought in?"

"Well, I wasn't sure if our parents were going to bring any food for tonight. Now that I see they did, we can save our spoils for later, since winter is coming."

The female Prehistoric Park rex nodded in understanding. "Oh. Save them for later. That's a good idea."

And sure enough, Tundrous and Sitka were quick to agree with that suggestion. It was quite a turn for the adult rexes that saw them as a threat at first to switch to trusting them.

The huge male rumbled in his throat before he spoke up. "Considering that winter is coming and our children need more practice in hunting as a team, I suppose we can let you two come along. We could use the extra muscle."

Aurora cheered, almost screeching to a point that grated their nonexistent ears. She was so excited that she started hip-bumping the Twins; Terrence felt awkward while Matilda felt like biting her head off for such a notion. "Cool! We are going to be one fierce team! Those leaf-eaters aren't going to know what hit'em!"

The family proceeded to drop off their prey into a ditch in the very back of the cave. It was there long before either of them arrived, so how it got there was a mystery. It was deep enough for the prey to hide, though the tops of their chests were barely noticeable. It was a good idea to keep them out most predators (unless they had a good sense of smell that could get passed the smell of other rexes or were just really curious), but it would not stop others from coming in for a bite.

Afterwards, they started out for their hunt. Despite being inexperienced in hunting, they were excited about this. This was their first real hunt, and in a group no less.

Now they could finally feel like the kings and queens they were meant to be, even if it was just for one night.

They were elated to go on this venture, but the both of them failed to sense the slight tension in the air. Had they bothered to look back, they would have seen Sitka trailing behind them slightly. She kept her eyes on them, like a hawk would to a wounded prey. The Twins were too busy conversing with Aurora and Borealis on the layouts of this valley and how delicious the food was to notice. Unlike her mate, her suspicions of them remained. She had seen them before at their wooden den and was not quite sure what to make of them.

She kept her eye on them while they proceeded out to find their kill.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Alaskan Forests…

Despite living in the crisp conditions of Alaska, the moon's comforting glow was very ethereal. With no cloud cover that night, the silvery moon shined enough to illuminate the trees of chilly redwood forest. With the winter approaching, the greenery was losing its luster, but the resilient cedar trees continued to grow despite the season. There was nothing but silence, trees, and the glow of the silver moon.

Then six figures stalked through the woods.

Tundrous and Sitka fell in step with each other. Despite their multi-toned bodies, the adults moved remarkably silent between the trees. They were the perfect examples of the perfect hunters.

Tailing the experienced hunters were four younger Rexes; their children, and Terrence and Matilda.

The Twins somehow managed to step upon every twig and stone on their path. They also bumped into trees thanks to their unawareness and lack of grace as hunters. The Twins cursed under their breaths from their stumbles, Aurora and Borealis having to silently shush their acquaintances. But other than that, the Alaskan Tyrannosaurus family was laser focused on their goal.

When the Twins were told that the Rex family was going hunting and that they could tag along, quietly walking through the woods wasn't quite what they had in mind. The teen Residents thought that being T-rexes meant that they were the top predator, hunting sauropod-sized prey, stomping through the vast forests, and roaring at the top of their lungs. That was what those T-rexes on media all did, and the TV never lied, right?

Tundrous and Sitka halted the procession of the group. Both of their children stopped at their parents' command, flanking their sides. Both Terrence and Matilda, not noticing the silent command, stumbled into the idle Rex teens.

"Ow!"

"Hey watch it!"

Both Alaskan siblings bit out, yet catching themselves from falling over. Terrence and Matilda sheepishly apologized. Before the Twins could talk, they were interrupted by deep grunting coming from the clearing ahead. The two carnivorous Residents peered through the foliage and were surprised at the being they saw.

There was a small group of very large herbivores pawing the ground and munching on some green stuff. The Twins were surprised at the size of these herbivores, they were a little over the length of the adult Rexes and just as bulky. If the Twins could equate them to anything, the herbivores looked like a mix between the Iguanodons and a crest-less Parasaurolophus. The largest member of the group had a white eye in contrast to his normal black one; a result of old age or a previous attack most likely.

"Perfect! A group of Edmontosaurus," Sitka whispered to the younger Rexes. "And one of them is partially blind!"

Tundrous then made a low rumble that emanated from the male's stomach. He and Sitka nodded and began to stalk off to flank the Edmontosaur group. Sitka then made a near-inaudible snort to her children, who also nodded. The feathered siblings crouched low, looking ready to pounce.

"Aurora, Borealis. What are you doing?" Matilda asked.

"Quiet!" Borealis harshly whispered.

"We're getting ready to ambush these fat guys," Aurora softly informed. "You two better get ready too. Give you a chance to show what you can do."

"Oh… Okay! We gotcha!" Terrence cheered.

Both Matilda and Terrence were itching to show off to the wild Rex family, eager to impress them with their hunting prowess. The four young Rexes inched their way to the open glade closer to the massive duckbills.

"Okay… get ready…" Aurora whispered, her whole body taut like a spring.

"Steady…" Borealis continued, licking his dagger-like teeth in anticipation.

"Go!" both siblings whispered.

*RRROOOAAARRR!*

The Alaskan Siblings were startled at the sudden bellowing and the Twins blatantly sprinting directly at their massive prey.

"Hey, what are you doing?!"

"Terrence! Matilda! Stop!"

The Twins didn't hear their new friends' warning; they were caught up in their own little "hunt". Their boisterous charge alerted every Edmontosaur in the glade, making them bolt away from the area. It surprised the Twins that those large herbivores could move so fast. Terrence and Matilda's intended target, the partially blind male, didn't run away like they expected. He aggressively honked at them and reared up to his hind legs.

It was at this moment, the Twins knew, that they f*cked up.

*BBAARRAAGG!*

The burly male Edmontosaurus used a hoof to strike Terrence in the face, violently knocking him to the ground. Before Matilda could shout in worry for her brother, the fierce duckbill managed to head-butt the underside of her jaw, making the teen Rex nearly bite her tongue; Matilda was left sprawled on the floor next to her brother.

Despite having the Twins at his mercy, the handicapped male fled when he saw Aurora and Borealis sprint out of their cover to save their friends. As the Edmontosaurus was galloping away, Tundrous and Sitka frantically lunged out in an attempt to salvage the blunder of a hunt caused by their children's new friends. Unfortunately, the scarred male juked and weaved through the adult Rexes' jaws and made a break to the forest.

"What in the world were you two thinking?!" Tundrous roared at the sprawled Twins.

"W-We were attacking the herd," Terrence stuttered.

"What hunter in their right mind would roar at unsuspecting prey? That is just inviting fight or flight."

"Who taught you younglings to hunt like that?" Sitka curiously asked.

"No time for that!" the father Rex interrupted. "Aurora, Borealis. This ambush turned into a chase. I want you and your friends to pursue that male. Make sure you attempt to injure him. We've had a streak of successful hunts so far, I'll be damned if this embarrassment of an ambush ends it!"

"Okay dad," Aurora nodded, "Borealis, start tracking! Matilda, Terrence, pull yourselves together. We need to get moving."

Her brother nodded, "On it Sis."

As the Twins regained their bearings, the four youths took off into the forest.

The Rex Residents have never been so thoroughly embarrassed in their life. They figured that since they had so much combat experience under their belt, that hunting would be a cinch. However, that Edmontosaurus swiftly beat them down. As the quartet sprinted through the trees, Aurora couldn't help but spare a few curious glances at her new friends.

"Terrence, Matilda… about back there…" Aurora tentatively started.

The Twins sighed, a bit uncomfortable at the situation.

"We haven't… exactly been hunting before." Terrence said.

"You haven't?" went the flabbergasted Borealis. "Shouldn't your parents have taught you how to hunt? And didn't you two mention that you were great hunters before?"

Aurora gave them a distrustful look, one that shamefaced the Twins. "You two were lying…weren't you?"

Matilda sighed. "We've lost our dad shortly before we hatched. And we lost our mom when we younger to another adult Rex."

Aurora raised an eye ridge. "How are you here if no one taught you to take care of yourself then?"

The Twins shared a look before Matilda responded. "We were rescued shortly after our mom was killed. And we've been cared for ever since."

"Who—?"

"Sis, look alive! I found the fat ass!" Borealis interrupted.

The quartet broke through the tree line to see the scarred Edmontosaur galloping across the clearing. Just as the male glanced back at the young Rexes, he was broad sided by a grey blur. A grey theropod's jaws was latched onto the ornithopod's back like a vice drawing large amounts of blood. In an instant later, several more figures darted out of the forest and struck various parts of the Edmontosaurus, each drawing blood. One last figure, a blue blur if the Twins saw correctly in the moon's light, dashed out and gave a killing blow to the herbivore's neck. What they all had in common was that they struck without alerting the plus sized prey. The duckbill groaned one last time before he slumped over dead.

"WOO! Great job fellas! This one's a big one!" the blue theropod cheered to his companions. When the Twins took a closer look, they saw that his right arm was malformed and slightly slumped, looking as if his arm had been broken and was improperly healed.

Both feathered Rexes shied away from the smaller, yet extremely dangerous group of predators. The Twins however, were left stunned as they continued to stare at the bleeding corpse at the smaller theropods' feet.

"There's—There's so much blood…" Matilda murmured.

"I think I'm gonna hurl…" Terrence said, gaining a green hue on his face. Let it be known that the Twins have NEVER had to kill for their meals before. As such, they were unprepared to see how messy a fresh kill could be.

The teens' stilled figures made the sapphire hued theropod take notice. He was wary at the new sights, but was relaxed when he saw the feathered Aurora and Borealis.

"Hey, hey, hey! Aurora and Borealis! The Northern Lights siblings!" The blue dinosaur cheered.

"H-Hello sir…" the Alaskan siblings stuttered.

Before the pleasant blue dinosaur could continue, Tundrous and Sitka broke through the tree line. The adult Rexes skidded to a halt when they recognized the pack of predators. Tundrous and Sitka were immediately put on edge.

"Ah, Tundrous! How are you Big T? And Sitka, lovely as ever."

"Yes… Greetings," Tundrous curtly nodded.

"Now, I know you four," the azure carnivore commented. His eyes then fell upon the Twins with curiosity. "But who are these two naked youngsters?"

"These are Terrence and Matilda. They are recent additions to my group from the south," Tundrous replied.

"'Terrence and Matilda'?" the predator questioned, looking over the young Rexes oddly. "I gotta admit, you kids got some weird names. What kind of creature names their hatchlings 'Terrence and Matilda' anyways?"

At this point, the Twins snarled at the insult to them.

"And what the heck's wrong with our names?!" Terrence growled.

Matilda continued off her brother. "What's your name? Blueberry? Small Fry? Maybe Gimp Arm!?"

The Rex family's jaws dropped at the shear disrespect shown to the blue theropod.

Immediately, the handicapped predator's posse snarled and bared their dagger teeth at the Resident teens.

"Who the HELL do you runts think you are?!" a male snarled.

"You got a death wish or something, brats?!" another theropod snapped.

Before the situation could escalate, the sapphire hued carnivore stepped forward.

"Hey, calm down everyone! I wouldn't be a good Alpha if I couldn't handle a little name calling from a couple of younglings," the pack leader interrupted before focusing at the Twins again. "By the way Sweetheart, the name's Gorgon. Gorgon the Alpha Gorgosaurus. Ya know, in case you're interested."

The now named Gorgon shifted to the two Gorgosaurs who shouted at the young Rexes.

"If you fellas got enough energy to scare some younglings, why don't you take a few boys to track that group of fat asses that passed through here?"

"Aw come on Gorgon, we just took down this big Edmonto!" Gorgon's subordinate complained.

"Get crackin' you two! We need more meat to feed our pack and our guests!" Gorgon cheerfully ordered.

"What! Come on Boss—!"

"Do it or I'll tear out your throat!" the leader swiftly said in the same tone. His tone and smile didn't match up with Gorgon's threat, but one look from his yellow, steely eyes told his underlings that he was serious.

Both males who interrupted merely nodded. "Right Boss…"

Gorgon's large pack left until it was just Gorgon himself, three other companions, and the Rexes.

"Well, now that all that nastiness is taken care of, this meeting is quite fortuitous Big T. I needed to talk to you and Sitka," Gorgon casually said as he paced slightly closer to the more physically imposing Rex couple.

"Do you now?" Tundrous said, raising an eye ridge.

"Yeah, it'll be quick, I promise." When the parents looked unmoved, Gorgon continued. "Also, I couldn't help but notice your kids are looking a little thin there. Been a few days since you've had a steady supply of meat? How about we let your kids and mine have their fill of the carcass here while we talk business, that sound good?"

Both Sitka and Tundrous shared a look with each other. While Gorgon had a less than stellar reputation, they both knew he treasured his child as much as they treasured Aurora and Borealis.

Both Rex parents sighed as they finally relented.

"Okay, fine." Sitka said.

Tundrous' cautious eyes never left the blue Gorgosaurus. "Lead the way, Gorgon."

"Alright, awesome!" Gorgon then focused his gaze to the forest. "Azura, it's okay to come out, hon!"

Tentatively stepping into the clearing was another sapphire colored Gorgosaurus.

However, instead of Gorgon's heavyset masculine frame, the new Gorgosaur was sleek in appearance, evident of a feminine figure. She was physically smaller, clearly showing that she was a teenager as well.

The now named Azura lit up when she saw Aurora and Borealis.

"Aurora! Borealis! It's good to see you two again!"

The Alaskan Siblings gave a genuine smile as the smaller theropod approached the two.

The young Gorgosaur pranced around the young Rexes like a hyper puppy. As the children of the wild carnivores were mingling amongst each other, Gorgon glanced at his three subordinates at his side.

"Wilhelm, Nisha, you're with me. Anaeth, be a darling and watch over the younglings, will ya? Don't want anything bad happening to them." Gorgon then spoke to the elder Rexes. "Tundrous. Sitka. This way."

At Gorgon's orders, Nisha, the brown and burgundy female, and Wilhelm, the gold and white colored male, stalked forward along with Gorgon into the forest. Tundrous and Sitka only hesitated for a moment, but they decided to humor Gorgon, if only to hear him out.

"See you later kiddos! Save me a piece of the heart my angel!"

"No promises daddy!" Azura called after her dad.

"Don't give your Aunt Anaeth any trouble, her ankle's going."

"I'll show you where my ankle's going, you titanic ass…" Anaeth grunted as she rolled her eyes as she stalked off to the side of the glade, far enough away from the younger members of the group, yet having a vantage of the entire area in case something does wander into the opening.

The crimson and black female was the strongest warrior of Gorgon's pack, so she didn't take any cracks from the blue Gorgosaurus personally since he unfortunately had that abrasive personality for as long as she had known him.

As Anaeth relaxed off to the side, Azura turned to the Twins with an apologetic look on her face.

"Sorry about my dad. He takes some time to get used to," the young Gorgosaurus apologized. "Like my dad said, my name is Azura. What are your names?"

"Name's Terrence."

"Matilda."

"Your dad sure is… unique," Terrence gingerly said.

"Yeah… well, he's a dad. He can't be cool all the time," the baby blue theropod chirped. "So anyways, where'd you guys come from? I've never seen you guys around here before."

The Twins shared a quick look, having an entire conversation between the two in an instant.

"We… are just passing through from the south," Matilda said.

Terrence continued off his sister. "Yeah! We traveled here until our home is renovated."

Matilda gave her brother a quick tail slap. She should've known that her brother couldn't improv.

"So… you two… traveled 'north'… for the winter?" Azura tentatively questioned. "Okay…"

The Gorgosaur huntress leaned over to Aurora and Borealis.

"Are these two brain ill?" Azura stage whispered to the Alaskan siblings.

"Azura!"

"Yeah."

"Borealis!" Aurora chastised the younger predators on their behavior.

"Anyways, nice to meet you two!" Azura said, changing her mood so fast that the Twins could have gotten whiplash. "Come on crazies, let's dig in."

Azura, Aurora, and Borealis went over to the recently deceased corpse. As the trio was busy trying to tear open the dead herbivore's ribcage, the Twins stood off to the side, unsure of how to cut in. Ever since Prehistoric Park rescued Terrence and Matilda, the teenaged Rexes never had to actually learn how to eat from a freshly killed animal. They just ate whatever Nigel's Keepers saw fit to feed them. As of now, the Park raised Residents felt a bit out of their element.

Aurora perked up when she noticed the Twins looking uncertain off to the side.

"Guys come on! Get in on this before Borealis hogs all the good parts!" the friendly Rex huntress said.

The Twins came forward to get a better look of the other younglings eviscerating the corpse. The Park raised Rexes noticed that despite them ripping up large quantities of meat, the Alaskan born carnivores barely ate those meaty pieces. Instead, they set it off to the side as they continued to tear into the body. Terrence and Matilda chose at that time to latch onto the carcass and ripped off pieces for them to eat.

It took the Twins by surprise from how warm the flesh and blood was from the fresh kill, so unlike the tepid animal carcasses that the Keepers gave them.

"Hey, why are you guys just eating the muscles?" Borealis commented, pausing from his eviscerating.

Both Twins were confused at the odd question.

"What else would we eat?"

Borealis rolled his eyes before turning to his sister. "Jeez Sis, where did you say you found these guys again?"

"Maybe they were raised to be scavengers?" Azura answered for the older Alaskan Rex.

The young Gorgosaurus gestured for the Twins to come closer. She then called out to the group's "Babysitter". "Auntie Anaeth! Can you help teach the crazies here the prime parts of a carcass?"

Anaeth merely sighed but complied at her surrogate niece's request. Despite being portrayed as a badass huntress, Anaeth had a soft spot for the cute little baby blue youngling. As the petite predator tore into the body until most of the muscle and ribs were dislodged, exposing the herbivore's organs, Anaeth sidled up to the group of younglings for her impromptu lesson. The adult Gorgosaurus then cleared her throat, looking as if she were a grisly biology teacher.

"As carnivores, we devour certain body parts in order to keep healthy," the crimson carnivore then pointed to a specific organ in the opened body. "This is the heart, the organ that pumps the blood in the body. Since it's a muscle, it's a bit tough to chew on, but sometimes some blood gets stuck in there mid pump, making a tasty bloody treat…"

Azura licked her chops before shaking out of her dreamy thoughts. "I got dibs on it, no touch!"

Anaeth snorted before she continued, edging lower on the carcass to two odd looking lumps.

"These lumps are kidneys. They contain vast amounts of blood for its size. These organs are softer and can be easily bitten through by even the weakest of bites."

"Those are a personal favorite of mine," Borealis commented. "Mom and Dad gave these parts to us to teach us about sharing or something."

Anaeth then moved a slight bit lower to a very large lump that was settled above the dead creature's intestines.

"This little beauty is the liver. This is where the most blood gathers and settles after a kill. It's VERY nutritious." The crimson theropod then bit around the organ and carefully extracted the liver and plopped it in front of the Twins. "Here, you two try it."

The Twins both approached the organ with some reservations before taking a small nibble. The first thing they noticed was that it was spongier than any other meat they had before. The second thing surprised them was the amount of bloody juice that splashed in their maws. Terrence and Matilda coughed and sputtered in surprise of how rich the exotic flavor was. Although it was different, it wasn't something the Twins disliked.

Anaeth and the other Alaskan residents chuckled at the Twins' strong reaction.

"Sorry about that. Liver flavor's a bit strong for first timers. But it's oh so good!" the crimson huntress giggled.

Despite being laughed at, the Twins took it in stride and laughed at their own expense. The group continued to disembowel the carcass, with the Twins learning all they could from their new connection to their wild predatory instincts.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As the teenaged rexes, babysitter, and other Gorgosaurs were having their meal, Tundrous and Sitka were in a situation they didn't want to be in.

The Elder Rexes begrudgingly followed Gorgon and his disciples deep into the forest to have their little "chat". Although the Rexes were physically more powerful than the Gorgosaurs, Gorgon's pack ruled over the most controlled land than any other theropod they have ever came across. Not only did the azure predator have a strong pack, he made several alliances with other carnivore species. If the feathered hunters were from the Present, they would have equated Gorgon to a Kingpin to several crime families. And unfortunately for the Rexes, they fell under Gorgon's rule. They helped provide muscle for the Gorgosaurus Kingpin in exchange for a large territory for them to raise their kids in.

Gorgon made his way to a small clearing that had a multitude of flat boulders scattered on the ground. The blue theropod hopped up on the largest rock until he was more or less at eye level with Tundrous and Sitka.

"Okay, serious time," Gorgon said unusually business-like than his norm.

"What do you want Gorgon?" Tundrous grunted. "It is unlike you to come into my family's territory unannounced."

"Yeah, I'll take responsibility for that. I was just confirming some things from some of our smaller neighbors. Besides, I wanted to talk to you two personally."

It was Sitka's turn to raise a brow in interest. "About?"

Gorgon then began to pace back and forth on the large boulder he stood on before continuing. "Word around the woods says that something new came to the main Feeding Ground hub a bit of a ways from Ambush Alley."

"I'd imagine 'something new' is a common occurrence for that place, considering it's a common place for travelers." Tundrous snarked.

"It's not a living thing," Gorgon replied. "Strange structures were assembled during the spring season by some little bipeds. I heard that these structures are big enough to encompass creatures as large as you two and then some."

"Structures made by little bipeds?" Sitka commented with some doubt. "Are you sure you haven't eaten some rancid flesh?"

"Me and Wilhelm thought that as well," the purple Gorgosaur responded. "However, we got our information from a gang of Troodon."

Sitka was still unconvinced. "Really, Troodons? Those delinquents are nothing but thieves and thugs that would do anything for scraps of meat."

"Well, you aren't wrong about that," Wilhelm chuckled. "But if there is one thing those parasites love, it's food. And they have been observing this place for a while now. What they've seen was a large herd of creatures living there."

"I'm telling you guys, those lumps of flesh are just BEGGING for us to go in and slaughter them." Gorgon eagerly said.

"And the reason your pack hasn't attacked them yet? Ambush Alley is in your territory." Tundrous curtly asked.

"Well big guy, I'm flattered that you think my pack is so capable, BUT I had some in my troupe do a headcount and there is an insane amount of creatures living there."

"How many is an 'insane amount'?" Tundrous questioned.

"A few hundred, give or take a few dozen," the blue leader casually mentioned, completely ignoring the Rexes' gaping faces. "Bottom line is that I'm recruiting every carnivore in the woods for my little 'hunting trip', and I could use the extra muscle."

"Even if we band together, you can't possibly think we can hunt all of those creatures," Sitka inputted her two cents. "Maybe one or two large bodies, but the rest would either flee or injure our hunting party."

"That's the best thing about it. The structure that the herd is living in protects them AND boxes them in. We just need to get in there and it'll be like a Troodon raiding an unattended nesting site."

Even though Gorgon painted an appealing picture, Tundrous and Sitka weren't sure of the pros and cons of the Gorgosaurus' hunting plans. The blue theropod could see the hesitation on their faces and decided to appeal to them a little bit more.

"Come on you two. You and I both know that winter is the harshest time to live through. Times are tough, and finding food is even tougher; finding enough food is damn near impossible, especially with a family. Not to mention my gut is telling me this winter will be the worst one; and my gut has never failed me. This boxed in herd is a godsend for us carnivores! We just need the power to take it."

The Rexes looked more convinced but were still unsure.

"Okay, how about you two sleep on it. Mull it over a while, and IF you want to join us, I'm rallying troops every week in my territory until we gather up enough forces to attack that structure," Gorgon relented, backing off the Rexes for the moment. "This—This has been a good chat. Good talk Tundrous, Sitka."

The two of them watched the one-armed Gorgosaurus turn tail and leave. They shared a doubtful glance at each other before they followed him back to where the feasting tyrannosaurs were. As they gorged on the Edmontosaur carcass, the parents could not help but contemplate on Gorgon's words.

Was it true? Somewhere in this valley, there were structures that were keeping large prey items inside? And there were over a hundred of them in there? If this was true, then there would be enough food to last them for months, maybe even a year! Then there was his explanation on strange little bipeds. What exactly were those? Surely not Troodons or raptors. Perhaps they were bipedal herbivores?

Even after they finished their meal and parted ways, those thoughts bugged them for the rest of the night like mosquitoes to a gaping wound. Everything Gorgon told them was too good to be true. It all sounded too fantastical...could it?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The forest was still abuzz with the vocalizations of creatures of the night. Even this far up north and in another time period, the forests of Late Cretaceous Alaska were always alive regardless of the time of day.

While it was a little noisy, Matilda and Terrence did not mind at all. They were so focused on how much they ate that night and the outcome of their hunt to even mind the wildlife. They just had their very first hunt, and with others of their kind no doubt. They made friends with a rex family that accepted them, encountered others that were rather rough, and had a rather exotic experience with their first real kill. Overall, the day was very eventful with mixed feelings.

With the late hours upon them, the Twins decided that it was time for them to head back. Tundrous and Sitka were rather tired from the meal and hunting so they chose to go back to their den, but not before having their children escort the Twin rexes to their home. Not wanting to give away their secret, they insisted that they take them back to where they first found the Anchiceratops. Thankfully, they did not question their judgement and went with them to that grove as they deduced they could find their way back from there.

When they arrived back at the spot where the ceratopsian met its end, the young rexes were once again chatting about the night's events.

"Okay, I have to admit, the hunt went off to a rocky start, but that was still great!" Aurora said rather reassuringly.

"Yeah, we make a great team!" Borealis seconded. "Though I'm still not sure who told you to run off roaring like that at prey when it's not the way to go."

Matilda gulped. Again with that mishap. Steeling herself, she did as best as she could to explain in a way they would understand. Neither of them would know what a television, or a phone, was after all. "Oh...uh we saw some other predator do it. Being that our parents died and we didn't really have anyone else to look up to for hunting, we assumed it was the right thing to do. Sorry..."

"Huh...so if you guys have no parents, then who's been looking after you?"

"And whoever did that kind of thing at a hunt must've screwed up big time if they went off like that."

And that question came up again. These rexes were very inquisitive. The Twins were really getting on the ropes with these two and their parents. Once again, they did the best they could to protect those back at the park. They did not want them to become their next potential meals or have the park become their next hunting grounds.

"Our guardians," the young featherless king replied. "They were the ones who looked out for us."

The feathered young queen gave them an inquisitive look. "Guardians?"

"Yeah!" an excited Terrence answered, "There's Nigel. He's the guy that took us in after we were orphaned. Then there are his friends; Suzanne, Bob, Marcus, and Hazel too."

Matilda gave him a snake-look before she stomped on his foot, making him whimper and cringe; so unlike a rex to act AND he just gave away part of their secret. While she silently berated him for his mistake, their friends continued to wonder about their answer.

"Nigel, Suzanne, Bob, Marcus and Hazel?" Borealis did his best to pronounce those names, with great success surprisingly. "I've never heard names like those before."

The Twins stopped dead immediately. Shutting themselves up from their little argument, they quickly looked up at the sky, hurriedly thinking of something to get them out of this situation before it got too interesting for their new friends.

"Oh would you look at the time!" Matilda started with the best excuse she could come up with. "It's pretty late, we better be getting back to our den. Gotta get some shut-eye so we can be rested for tomorrow!"

Her remark had its intended effect, as it disappointed the two teenagers, mostly Borealis for some reason as he was rather upset about it. Matilda just shook that off as she was more focused on trying to get out of there.

"Oh…okay," he responded sadly.

"Well it was nice meeting you two," his sister made a quick comeback, "Hey, we should go hunting again. With winter coming, we're going to need some help with getting more food. My dad says that this winter will be a pretty harsh one."

"Okay sounds good!" the elder male made a toothy grin.

"We can pop by your den and pick you up for our hunts."

"No!"

The feathered hunters went quiet at the sudden outburst the featherless teen made. Realizing her mistake, Matilda quickly righted herself with a clearing of her throat to make herself more appropriate.

"No um...our den is a bit of a ways from here and we don't want to make you travel all the way just to come for us. How about we just meet here?"

"Hm...okay then," Aurora agreed, recovering from the shock from before, "Want to hunt again tomorrow? Like right before dark?"

"Sure!"

"Sounds like a plan."

And with that said, the two groups bid each other farewell and went about their separate ways. To the Twins, that was a close one, a little too close for comfort. They told each other they needed to be more careful the next time they were with them in regards to their origins. And Matilda once again scolded her brother for his mistake.

But other than their near slip-up, they enjoyed this night. For the first time, they now had other rexes to call friends. This was what they missed when they were younger. They did not have a normal childhood, but this new friendship makes up for it. They liked their new friends and did not want to mess up their new friendships.

They could only hope they do not discover the truth about their upbringing, or of their friends in the park.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

While the rexes were sneaking back to their enclosure for the night, a certain small predator was patiently, or rather impatiently, waiting for his dinner. His dinner was supposed to arrive three hours ago; a nice, juicy, medium-sized pig. But nope, the humans were really late.

Rascal had been resting on his hay bed, safely huddled inside the warming tent that kept him from freezing outside. He was not quite used to the change in temperature, but he did appreciate the warmth the manmade cave provided. That was one thing he appreciated about the humans; at least they're doing their best to keep him alive. And he was doing his best to tough it out.

Unfortunately, they were not doing so great with doing everything on time. With winter on the way, they were getting things done later by the day.

Right when he was about to drift off to sleep, he heard the familiar creaking of the enclosure gate. His head perked up and he walked out into the cold. His body shivered a little before he willed himself to stop.

He rolled his eyes when he saw two humans hauling in a pig carcass by the legs. Rascal barked angrily when they dropped it at his feet.

"Well it's about fricking time, you slowpokes! What they heck took you so long!?"

"Sorry!" said one of the humans, who was wearing a thick brown coat and had a warm hat covering his head and ears. "We got caught up in other things!"

"Yeah well you should have worked them out better! And faster! I was starving! What, you were trying to kill me by starving me to death!?"

"Put a sock in it, Rascal!" yelled the other human, a female wearing a black thick coat with a brown muffler covering most of her face. "We're here now!"

"Yeah? Well if I weren't shivering out here, I would have taken that sock and fed it to you...whatever that is," he pointed a talon at them.

"Pfft, yeah right!" argued the male human, "You don't have hands or opposable thumbs!"

Rascal angrily hissed, making them back away a few steps. "Just get out of here! I got a date with my meal that you made me late for!"

The woman was about to retort a comeback when her partner stopped her. A hushed conversation went between them that led to them quickly leaving the enclosure. When they finally exited his abode, he went about the one thing that should cheer him up for the night.

"Finally! Time for some dinner."

He was ready to sink his teeth into the warmed flesh of the dead mammal. Among all of the meat that the humans fed him, pork was one of his favorites. He always like it a little warm, though the cold weather was freezing it by the minute. This thing needed to be consumed now if he wanted to savor a warm meal.

Rascal was about to enjoy his pork a la carte when something interrupted him…again. What was it now? Another human? Couldn't they see he had a dinner date with a dead pig!?

No wait…something was off. He sniffed the air. The smells of the herbivores, the humans, the spice-woody scents of the trees, the faint scents of the dying ferns, and the noxious odors coming from the buildings were all over the place. But thanks to his keen sense of smell, he was able to pick up that one scent. It was not one of those things.

The past couple of times he went hunting with Espantos (times he wished he could off himself), he remembered the scent of blood from that one Alaskocephale. That familiar hint of metallic liquid was intoxicating.

The thing he smelled now was just that; blood. And it was also with something…familiar.

He heard a twig crunch. Rascal quickly turned his head to the right. What he saw took him off guard completely.

It was a small, slender, light blue predator with a gray face and orange eyes.

The creature about his size, just short a couple of inches. Like him, it had sharp talons at the end of its fingers and toes. Its hide was actually coated in a light blue feathered down, making it appear like a wingless bird, minus the beak. The small size had a benefit; light on their feet to make a speedy getaway or an ambush attack. The big eyes meant good eyesight, especially at night. In Rascal's mind, it was like he was staring at himself, if he had a different eye color and blue feathers.

Rascal leapt to his feet, went into a crouch and hissed at the intruder. The creature jumped back and got into a defensive position, baring its claws. How did this thing get passed the humans' defense system? Just where did it come from?

If there was one thing Rascal could think of that this one was after, it was after his food.

"Hey! Back off! This is my meal!" the orange Troodon spat at the interloper.

The creature, clearly male judging from the deep grungy voice, replied quickly. "You…how did you do that?"

"Do what?" Rascal answered in his usual mafia accent.

The stranger only answered in stammers, which annoyed the Park's local nuisance even more. If there was one thing on Rascal's list he hated, it was not getting a straight answer.

"Talk 'Little Boy Blue'," he warned gravely, "or I'll come over there and bite your head off!"

"How did you command those creatures to obey you?" the blue hunter finally said.

Caught off guard by such a question, Rascal righted himself before he got into a confused daze about that. "Come again?"

"Those bipeds that were with you before; how did you get them to follow your command? They're not of your...OUR...kind. Yet you ordered them to hunt for you."

"Uh...I didn't really do much? Those guys are in charge of bringing me food, considering the little situation we're in. But they let me hunt also. Heh, but if you ask me, those guys are a bunch of idiotic slowpokes," said Rascal as he continued to stare down the stranger.

"So you got them to hunt for you by giving them orders?"

The troublemaker cackled almost sadistically. While that did make the blue one a little uncomfortable, he did not show any sign of it. "I wouldn't say I ordered them. They just know to give me food."

"Amazing!" went the now interested hunter. "Every creature in this valley bows to your every whim! You must tell me how you do it!"

Rascal lifted his claws up in a slow-down motion. "Whoa whoa whoa! Back up! Just who the heck are you?"

Right when he said that, the blue interloper became shamefaced. A frown appeared on his toothy maw and he shifted on his feet. A sigh escaped his throat before any other word came out. Just how formal was this guy?

"Forgive me. My manners have been incompetent as of late with this winter coming. My name is Patch. I'm the leader of my pack."

The spoiled predator snorted briskly in the cold air, almost coughing. "Pack? You mean there's more of you? Just what are you guys? I've never seen anyone else dressed up like a blue chicken before. Well, except for those feathered pests that fly over my head in this place every now and then."

Once again, the stranger just stared at him as if he had lost his mind. Rascal huffed; of course he wouldn't know what that was. Then again, he hasn't seen an actual LIVE chicken. The only ones he had seen were the already prepped ones that he would eat.

"Er, yes," he replied, even though he was a bit cautious on Rascal's language, "There are twelve of us. And that is an awfully strange question for a fellow Troodon to ask one of their kind. Though I have never seen you before."

Rascal gawked. Did he just say what he thought he said? "Wait...you're..."

He did another take at this Patch fellow. They're almost the same size. They have a similar build, though Patch does look thinner than Rascal because he didn't have the privileges of living in Prehistoric Park. They both look light on their feet. They both have big eyes. And the biggest characteristic was that smell.

Rascal knew that smell. It was a little varied with a mix of conifer and herbivore, but there was a part of it that smelled just like him. Words could not describe this scent. He just knew it spelled "his kind".

"Okay…you got my attention," he said leery.

"So you've lived with these…things all your life?" Patch asked, referring to the humans. "And they've been serving you? Where is your pack?"

It was at that moment that Rascal understood. This guy seemed to have taken an interest in how he does things, like bossing those humans around. And he has a pack too. It had been so long since he was in a pack; years in fact. Before he accidentally went to Prehistoric Park, he was kicked out of his old one because they could not stand his antics. Well, mostly the alpha female of the pack, actually. She could not stand his charms. In other words, he tried to come onto her forcefully and she rebuked him…painfully. It took a long time for his wounds to heal up from that time.

If this guy became his thrall, or better yet, him and his pack, then he could have them attack anybody that annoyed him whenever he wanted. And he would have his own pack to be in!

It was a win-win situation! Rascal liked that.

Rascal shifted his footing and began his explanation in a most innocent tone. "Well, I wouldn't say all my life. They kind of just found me. And I don't have a pack."

Patch gasped, unnerving the orange Troodon greatly. "What!? You're a loner!?"

"Hey hey come on!" he retorted before resorting to a near whisper. "Not so loud. I don't want the humans to catch wind of us."

The blue speedster cocked an eye and responded in a whisper as well, but not before leaning in closer to the fence. "Humans?"

"Those guys you saw serving my food."

Rascal could tell that he was puzzled; the narrowing of the eyes, the opening and closing of his jaw like he was trying to say something, and then him giving in to the explanation. Patch then decided to change the topic rather than dwell on the topic more. "If you have no pack, then you must meet mine. We welcome anyone who can help us with getting more food. And perhaps figure out some way to hunt better with all of this game here."

The little nuisance stifled a wicked grin. This just kept getting better and better. With them under his thrall, he'll be able to get the run of this place in no time. Of course, he'll have to be careful with having this pack hunt in this valley. Hunting any human or Resident wouldn't bode well for anybody. But then there's the new herd here...

"Well if that's the case, take me to your pack."

Patch shook his head. "There's no need."

When he said that, the blue speedy predator quickly turned his head over at one of the nearby storage buildings. He barked three times in a row, as if he were one of the Velociraptors in the Jurassic Park movies. Rascal may have spent some time in the 21st century, but he knew that it was him doing a calling. His former leader did the same thing when he was still living in a pack.

When Patch finished, all was silent. Rascal waited for a response to it. Usually, when someone calls like that, they would answer back. There was none.

He was about to make a snide remark about him being a liar when he noticed three feathered heads peeking from behind one of the corners. Rascal gawked when he saw those three heads slowly come out of hiding to reveal other blue Troodons.

Soon, three became eight, and finally twelve. Patch was not kidding; twelve was a sizeable pack. And they were all blue, with a few differences. There were some with darker blue feathers and some lighter blues on some parts of their bodies. They were slenderer than the others who were light blue all over. Females, most likely. The light blue males also had light blue feathers like Patch, except they were ranging from lighter to darker hues. If Rascal had to guess, they were representing differing ages. When he took a closer look at Patch, he noted one feature that separated him from the rest of his pack; the white-tipped plumage on his arms that made him look like white wings. Perhaps it was a sign of his status as the leader.

Rascal watched as all of them slowly approached their leader and stood just before the fence that kept the Prehistoric Park nuisance inside. They inspected it in all manners; from sniffing it to tapping the barrier with their claws, all while whispering about the strange thing that kept this other Troodon inside.

The spoiled mafia-predator was starting to feel a little uncomfortable with all the eyes staring at him. He wanted attention, but he wasn't used to attention where everyone was either inspecting him or admiring him. It was a little uncomfortable, but at the same time, it was…satisfying. Now they were looking at him as if he were some kind of guardian.

Then, one of them stepped up to Patch. It was a dark blue female with white tipped feathers going down her neck. Her red eyes locked onto Patch's orange ones before she craned her neck over his. The alpha of the pack did the same.

"Patch, is everything alright?" asked the female in a velvety tone like that of silk.

"Yes dear," he returned the gesture with some soft claw strokes on her back. "Everything is okay."

"This your girlfriend?" Rascal inquired at the embracing couple.

Patch nodded. "Her name is Eira. She's my mate."

The now named Eira smiled and did a combination of a nod and a bow. "Well met. Patch here has been keeping an eye on this valley ever since these newcomers came along. When he saw you, he was pretty curious. He wouldn't stop talking about how someone like us is living with all of these giants."

"Oh…fancy that," he whistled while trying to look away from the romance.

"Eira, our friend here has volunteered to help us. He's going to show us the ins and outs of this place. With his help, we'll be able to survive the winter," her mate said with confidence.

"Really?" she beamed. "Oh thank you…"

Eira stopped. She looked up and down at him with a look of confusion. "Uh…what is your name?"

Rascal smirked. This was going to be easier than he thought. His smile then turned into a conniving grin. "Call me Rascal."

A.N. Well that was interesting! First we've got the rexes getting along, the introduction of some rather interesting characters, and now Rascal has a few new buddies...along with some ulterior motives. So a couple of things about this chapter...

1) The Rex hunt was actually written by Marc first and the Twins' eating experience/hunt/Gorgon's conversation with Tundrous and Sitka were all by him.

2) We kind of put in some characteristic differences with Patch and Eira just to differentiate them from their pack. And yes, we now Patch isn't the leader of a pack, but let's just say that he became one sometime after the events of March of the Dinosaurs.

3) Gorgon is actually based off of a video game character. We're not saying who because that would be spoilers. We will say that this character is not from Nintendo.

Other than that, we hope you enjoyed this chapter and stay tuned for the next one :)