Sorry for being late, let's get this show on the road again.
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After going back to the present to retrieve some supplies, the group heads back to the Miocene, only this time, to a more recent segment.
Now, they are once again at the shores of the Pacific, but this time, it is noticeably colder than it was before. All they can see in an endless shoreline, with hills to their right and ocean to their left. The smell of brine fills the air.
"Let me guess," remarks Violet, "we went further forward in time and the ice caps have gotten bigger."
"Yes, but we've also gone farther North", answers Nigel.
"Really?"
"Yes. This is modern day Oregon. We're much closer to the Arctic Circle now, which had made the cold far more noticeable than it was earlier."
"Ok," remarks Alice, "we're farther North. Can we please finish this conversation soon?"
"Why?" asks Tristan.
"One, it's COLD; Two, I don't like the smell of brine and Three... Something is looking at us."
Surprised by her last statement, the group turns to looks at where she is staring... only to find themselves looking at a Chaolicothere.
"Is that a Moropus?" asked Tai.
"No, those are extinct now. That's a Tylocephalonyx."
"But I thought there weren't any other Chaolicotheres in North America?" asks Violet.
"You're wrong." answers Marcus.
Just then, the group hears the sounds of branches breaking to their right. Turning, they find an entire herd of Chaolicotheres, as well as many, many, MANY mammals grazing nearby.
"This is getting ridiculous," remarked Vera, "WHY ARE WE SEEING SO MANY ANIMAlS?!"
"I don't know," remarked Nigel," but I don't see why we can't rescue them."
With that, the group gets to work setting up the portal, failing to notice the large silhouettes in the water behind them.
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Meanwhile, back at the park, Bob is dealing with the Zygolophodon. It's much harder than he expected it would be, as they act just like the titanosaurs.
"These mastodon are a bigger problem then the titanosaurs: not only do they wander around quite a bit when looking for food, but they also have those long tusks. Right now, my biggest concern is what will happen if they meet the elephant herd. While the matriarch may have been accepting of Martha, I'm not sure how she'll react to a whole new herd."
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Unknown to Bob, his fears are about to be realized.
Near Mammoth mount, one of the Mastodon has been attracted to a set of trees by the smell of fruit. Joining her is her male calf. While he has already been weaned, he still relies on his mother for protection.
The main attraction for the mother is a set of Paw Paw trees, which contain the largest fruit native to North America. Ironically, this type of tree would have been one of the favored treats of the American Mastodon, but now, with the mastodon long gone, these fruits simply land on the ground and rot.
For the mother, though, this is a feast worth enjoying. After taking a quick bite out of one of the fruits, she begins to scour the ground around the trees, searching for more of the fruit. Her calf, sharing her love of the new food source, also searches for any fruit he can find.
Just as he has his trunk around a good piece, he suddenly feels something else pulling on the fruit, which is soon yanked from his grasp. Turning, he finds himself facing the elephant calf. The two calves stare at each other, surprised to see an animal so similar, yet so different from themselves.
Then, the mother mastodon notices the elephant calf. Turning toward the female, she wonders where the calf's herd is, as there are no others nearby.
A loud bellow interrupts her train of thought. Turning toward it, she finds herself facing Martha and the elephant Matriarch.
Immediately on the defenseive, the female mastodon places herself between her calf and the new proboscidians she has encountered, eady to fight to protect her young.
Her fears are moot, though. The elephant and mammoth merely look at the two calves before going back to grazing. After a few moments of straing on cautiously, the mother follows suite and goes back to looking for fruit, albeit staying very close to her calf this time.
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Meanwhile, at the Montanaspinus exhibit, a male mastodon is enjoying a refreshing treat. Within the exhibit is a supply of delicious plants growing in the stream the spinosaurs feed in. The mastdon, attracted by an appetizing meal, knocked down the wall to access the succulent plants.
The spinosaurs response to this is indifference, as they have no reason to fight the mastodon. Monty, however, notices the hole in the fence and approaches to investigate.
After looking at the hole for a moment, he walks outside and begins to explore the rest of the park.
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AN: Well, that isn't good.
Also, this adventure and the one immediately following it is the only time all of our younger cast will show up in one episode for the foreseeable future, as that way I can spend more time characterizing them as individuals.
So, read, review, send me episode and character ideas and vote on the poll. This is Flameal15k, signing off.
