Chapter 31
As the days got a little shorter, the harvest season was fast approaching and that meant only one thing to Croco: a chance at redemption in the Ring Races. The memories of last year still lingered in his head like it all happened yesterday...the bump, the fall, rolling around on the track in pain and knowing that his shot at continuing on to Canyon City would have to wait. He had all but blocked them out with organizing the ringball teams and meeting everyone but now that Croco knew that the Games were nearing, it was starting to come back and his closest friends knew it.
The day also came where the new ringball stadium in Bent Root would host its first match as the team from Chandara would arrive. Croco and Darren worked hard to prepare their teams, and this would momentarily ease Croco's mind from the accident. As the Treetown team took the field and he shook hands with Lugino Zanelli, the coach of the Chandarans, a feeling came over Croco that this might be his final game for a long time as he knew that ringball would get in the way of his intentions of becoming a Skybax rider. But that feeling went away at the opening roll ball as he knew that they had a game to play.
Right from the beginning, Croco knew that the new Chandarans were good as his Treetown team never led in the first half. However, they would come back and when the final horn sounded, the Treetowners had won by a score of 193 to 187. Lugino met the player-coach Croco at midfield to shake his hand.
"You've got a strong team there, Croco," he said with a prominent Italian accent, "It's a shame that you won't be a full time player cause you're an excellent lead." Croco thanked Lugino and told him that he might play on occasion, but it would be a rare one as his future duties would take up a lot of his time. Then he wished him luck against Darren's team, which would be called "New Chandara," although none of the players were from that town.
Two days later, Darren's team would take the field and score a convincing 200 to 168 victory and Lugino kept true to his promise and named him the new lead of his team when he left Treetown. Overall, the new stadium was met with success as a lot of the townsfolk from Bent Root came out to see the games. The stadium had one side of the field filled with bleachers for humans and small saurians to sit and watch while the other side had a seven foot high wall with a platform for larger saurians to enjoy the game. At both ends was a thirty foot high wall that extended all the way around the Zones. Only sauropods and their riders could see anything over this and even then, they didn't stand within forty feet of the rings so they could get a good view of the action in front of the keepers.
After the matches were completed and Lugino had taken his men back to Chandara, the young people got back to focusing on the upcoming Dinosaur Olympics. To Croco's delight, he was teamed up with Sabrine and Swifty again and they went to work rebuilding their bond and preparing for the races that would start in another week. Just as they completed their final practice session, they were surprised to see Bix and Cassie waiting for them. Croco seated himself on the saddle, then hopped off to greet the protoceratopses.
"I see that you and Sabrine are looking good again out there," Cassie said while hoping not to jinx them. They both smiled as they all embraced each other and talked about the upcoming races. Croco and Sabrine would be going out on the first day of competition while Darren and his new partner, a girl from the nearby town of Sweet Creek named Pollina would go out on the third day. All were excited to see the opening ceremonies pass as the competition would start the next day.
Sunrise came and Croco was ready to go. To his surprise, he wasn't quite that nervous and in fact, he was more excited than scared despite the fact that he fell and broke his arm the year before. He met up with Sabrine and Swifty in the holding area to make a few last minute preparations and were ready for the parade where the competitiors circled the track. While they were going around, Croco spotted Brock and Mira in the crowd as they waved at him. He waved back as Swifty and the other competitors took their places at the line. The cymbal crashed to send them on their way as the dimorphodon circled the track to set the pace.
Croco and Sabrine were making it look easy, grabbing ring after ring and staying out front as much as they could. But Croco was expecting to get a bump that would potentially throw him off but it never came as the cymbal crashed again to end the race. The dust had cleared and they had six of the rings which was the most of all the teams. When they saw this, Croco and Sabrine threw their arms in the air...they had just won the race!
Swifty circled the track at a reduced speed as people cheered loudly and waved their arms in the air, while at the same time the dinosaurs stamped and bellowed and the long-necked saurs swung their heads toward them as a sign of their commendation. When they exited the track, they were followed by a throng of children as they made their way over to where an elder Triceratops called "Thunderhorn" was waiting for them. Many of the saurian elders gave them their blessings as they approached Thunderhorn. Cassie was with them as he presented them a token of good fortune and addrerssed them with Cassie as their translator.
"You young humans have just cracked through your shell," he said, "You are now worthy of becoming a Habitat Partner. The earth, the sea, and the sky call out to you and are open to your choosing. What Habitat, what zone of life do you choose?" Sabrine took time and thought about it while Croco didn't hesitate to make his intentions known.
"I am of the sky, and that's where I wish to return," Croco said proudly. "Therefore, I choose the sky." Thunderhorn thought about it, then praised his decision. Meanwhile, Sabrine had finally made up her mind.
"I shall choose the earth," she said. The triceratops took time to think about Sabrine's choice, then he nodded.
"You seem to be one with the sea," Thunderhorn told her, "but if the earth beckons you, I have no choice but to let you answer the call." He wished them luck on their respective journeys before they left. When Croco came out, he was tackled to the ground by Kaala as she was so happy for him. Brock, Mira and Nobby waited for her to finish before congratulating him themselves.
"You don't know how proud we are of you," Mira said to him. "Being able to watch our seed flower before our very eyes brings me great joy." Croco didn't know what it meant at first but he had an idea as to what she was saying. Then a bellow was heard and an ecstatic Nobby rushed in to embrace him.
"I am so proud of you!" she said, "I can't even find the right words in all my wisdom to tell you! I'll be waiting for the day where I can meet your Skybax, although to be honest I really can't wait. Good luck in your training Croco!" And that's how the day was for Croco and Sabrine, accepting praise from everyone they came across and it was a feeling that they enjoyed.
However, the next day they would end up going their separate ways and that brought a feeling of sadness upon Croco. The good-bye between him and his best friend Darren went along better than planned, but saying good-bye to Nalina would be the hardest thing he had ever done so far. The sight of her long brown hair and deep blue eyes made him melt inside and knowing that now was harder than it ever was before. But he still made his way over to where she was.
"I can't believe you won!" Nalina shouted as she threw herself into Croco's arms. Croco told her that he was still getting used to it himself. "So what Habitat did you choose Croco?" she asked. Then she caught herself, recalling all of her experiences with him. "Or do I even need to ask?"
"Come on Nalina," he said, "which one do you think I chose?"
"Knowing you Croco...I'd say you chose the sky, since you've been so obsessed with being a Skybax rider. How long have you been wanting to ride?"
"Ever since I landed on Dinotopia, all I've ever thought about was getting the chance to fly again," Croco told her. "Three long years, and now it's going to become a reality. I'm so excitied right now, I can barely contain myself!"
"I know, but you won't be so excited to start training. I hear Oolu's pretty tough."
"Come on, it can't be that bad," he said, "but it should be pretty interesting though." The sun was starting to set in the western sky, and the sun was also setting on the relationship between Nalina and Croco. They embraced each other for one final time, as Croco reminded her that he would be checking up on her periodically when he gets his Skybax.
"Be sure to write me," she said as she finally parted from Croco.
"I'll be sure to," he replied as he stepped away from the girl that took his heart. He was never really in love until he met Nalina. "Breathe deep..."
"...Seek peace," and like that, Croco headed back to his basket for the final time.
As the days got a little shorter, the harvest season was fast approaching and that meant only one thing to Croco: a chance at redemption in the Ring Races. The memories of last year still lingered in his head like it all happened yesterday...the bump, the fall, rolling around on the track in pain and knowing that his shot at continuing on to Canyon City would have to wait. He had all but blocked them out with organizing the ringball teams and meeting everyone but now that Croco knew that the Games were nearing, it was starting to come back and his closest friends knew it.
The day also came where the new ringball stadium in Bent Root would host its first match as the team from Chandara would arrive. Croco and Darren worked hard to prepare their teams, and this would momentarily ease Croco's mind from the accident. As the Treetown team took the field and he shook hands with Lugino Zanelli, the coach of the Chandarans, a feeling came over Croco that this might be his final game for a long time as he knew that ringball would get in the way of his intentions of becoming a Skybax rider. But that feeling went away at the opening roll ball as he knew that they had a game to play.
Right from the beginning, Croco knew that the new Chandarans were good as his Treetown team never led in the first half. However, they would come back and when the final horn sounded, the Treetowners had won by a score of 193 to 187. Lugino met the player-coach Croco at midfield to shake his hand.
"You've got a strong team there, Croco," he said with a prominent Italian accent, "It's a shame that you won't be a full time player cause you're an excellent lead." Croco thanked Lugino and told him that he might play on occasion, but it would be a rare one as his future duties would take up a lot of his time. Then he wished him luck against Darren's team, which would be called "New Chandara," although none of the players were from that town.
Two days later, Darren's team would take the field and score a convincing 200 to 168 victory and Lugino kept true to his promise and named him the new lead of his team when he left Treetown. Overall, the new stadium was met with success as a lot of the townsfolk from Bent Root came out to see the games. The stadium had one side of the field filled with bleachers for humans and small saurians to sit and watch while the other side had a seven foot high wall with a platform for larger saurians to enjoy the game. At both ends was a thirty foot high wall that extended all the way around the Zones. Only sauropods and their riders could see anything over this and even then, they didn't stand within forty feet of the rings so they could get a good view of the action in front of the keepers.
After the matches were completed and Lugino had taken his men back to Chandara, the young people got back to focusing on the upcoming Dinosaur Olympics. To Croco's delight, he was teamed up with Sabrine and Swifty again and they went to work rebuilding their bond and preparing for the races that would start in another week. Just as they completed their final practice session, they were surprised to see Bix and Cassie waiting for them. Croco seated himself on the saddle, then hopped off to greet the protoceratopses.
"I see that you and Sabrine are looking good again out there," Cassie said while hoping not to jinx them. They both smiled as they all embraced each other and talked about the upcoming races. Croco and Sabrine would be going out on the first day of competition while Darren and his new partner, a girl from the nearby town of Sweet Creek named Pollina would go out on the third day. All were excited to see the opening ceremonies pass as the competition would start the next day.
Sunrise came and Croco was ready to go. To his surprise, he wasn't quite that nervous and in fact, he was more excited than scared despite the fact that he fell and broke his arm the year before. He met up with Sabrine and Swifty in the holding area to make a few last minute preparations and were ready for the parade where the competitiors circled the track. While they were going around, Croco spotted Brock and Mira in the crowd as they waved at him. He waved back as Swifty and the other competitors took their places at the line. The cymbal crashed to send them on their way as the dimorphodon circled the track to set the pace.
Croco and Sabrine were making it look easy, grabbing ring after ring and staying out front as much as they could. But Croco was expecting to get a bump that would potentially throw him off but it never came as the cymbal crashed again to end the race. The dust had cleared and they had six of the rings which was the most of all the teams. When they saw this, Croco and Sabrine threw their arms in the air...they had just won the race!
Swifty circled the track at a reduced speed as people cheered loudly and waved their arms in the air, while at the same time the dinosaurs stamped and bellowed and the long-necked saurs swung their heads toward them as a sign of their commendation. When they exited the track, they were followed by a throng of children as they made their way over to where an elder Triceratops called "Thunderhorn" was waiting for them. Many of the saurian elders gave them their blessings as they approached Thunderhorn. Cassie was with them as he presented them a token of good fortune and addrerssed them with Cassie as their translator.
"You young humans have just cracked through your shell," he said, "You are now worthy of becoming a Habitat Partner. The earth, the sea, and the sky call out to you and are open to your choosing. What Habitat, what zone of life do you choose?" Sabrine took time and thought about it while Croco didn't hesitate to make his intentions known.
"I am of the sky, and that's where I wish to return," Croco said proudly. "Therefore, I choose the sky." Thunderhorn thought about it, then praised his decision. Meanwhile, Sabrine had finally made up her mind.
"I shall choose the earth," she said. The triceratops took time to think about Sabrine's choice, then he nodded.
"You seem to be one with the sea," Thunderhorn told her, "but if the earth beckons you, I have no choice but to let you answer the call." He wished them luck on their respective journeys before they left. When Croco came out, he was tackled to the ground by Kaala as she was so happy for him. Brock, Mira and Nobby waited for her to finish before congratulating him themselves.
"You don't know how proud we are of you," Mira said to him. "Being able to watch our seed flower before our very eyes brings me great joy." Croco didn't know what it meant at first but he had an idea as to what she was saying. Then a bellow was heard and an ecstatic Nobby rushed in to embrace him.
"I am so proud of you!" she said, "I can't even find the right words in all my wisdom to tell you! I'll be waiting for the day where I can meet your Skybax, although to be honest I really can't wait. Good luck in your training Croco!" And that's how the day was for Croco and Sabrine, accepting praise from everyone they came across and it was a feeling that they enjoyed.
However, the next day they would end up going their separate ways and that brought a feeling of sadness upon Croco. The good-bye between him and his best friend Darren went along better than planned, but saying good-bye to Nalina would be the hardest thing he had ever done so far. The sight of her long brown hair and deep blue eyes made him melt inside and knowing that now was harder than it ever was before. But he still made his way over to where she was.
"I can't believe you won!" Nalina shouted as she threw herself into Croco's arms. Croco told her that he was still getting used to it himself. "So what Habitat did you choose Croco?" she asked. Then she caught herself, recalling all of her experiences with him. "Or do I even need to ask?"
"Come on Nalina," he said, "which one do you think I chose?"
"Knowing you Croco...I'd say you chose the sky, since you've been so obsessed with being a Skybax rider. How long have you been wanting to ride?"
"Ever since I landed on Dinotopia, all I've ever thought about was getting the chance to fly again," Croco told her. "Three long years, and now it's going to become a reality. I'm so excitied right now, I can barely contain myself!"
"I know, but you won't be so excited to start training. I hear Oolu's pretty tough."
"Come on, it can't be that bad," he said, "but it should be pretty interesting though." The sun was starting to set in the western sky, and the sun was also setting on the relationship between Nalina and Croco. They embraced each other for one final time, as Croco reminded her that he would be checking up on her periodically when he gets his Skybax.
"Be sure to write me," she said as she finally parted from Croco.
"I'll be sure to," he replied as he stepped away from the girl that took his heart. He was never really in love until he met Nalina. "Breathe deep..."
"...Seek peace," and like that, Croco headed back to his basket for the final time.