As the sun was setting, Talon pushed his way through a break in the trees
and stepped out
onto a riverbank...and gazed across the water at the most incredible
assortment of
creatures he'd ever seen.
Some of them were huge...long necks, even longer tails, and so heavy that the ground trembled when they moved. Some were only a little bigger than he was, with strange flat faces and mouths that ended in bills. There was a flock of tiny ones that wouldn't have come halfway to his hip. And there were ones about his size that walked on two legs. For a moment he thought he had found the other raptors; but these were plant-eaters, with necks too long and heads too small to be members of his species. He was disappointed. Still, he could just pick out the raptor-scent out from the tangled, confusing mixture. It was the only one that was familiar.
It didn't occur to him to wonder how he knew the bipedal dinosaurs were plant eaters, when he'd never encountered one before. It also didn't occur to him that he'd been nervous about the varied scents until he'd actually seen what they were. Once he saw them, he'd relaxed, knowing that none of them were a threat. *How* he knew didn't even come up.
It appeared that they were gathering themselves to move on for the night. No doubt they rested somewhere further from the water, so as not to be ambushed by carnivores coming there for an early-morning drink. That was probably a good idea, even for him -- there were still some rather menacing sounds coming from upriver. He decided to follow the others' example, and disappeared back into the forest, moving purposefully until he was well away from the river.
Talon searched until he'd found a relatively secluded spot to settle down for the night. It offered good cover and was fairly close to a fast-flowing stream. He was no longer concerned about the sounds he'd heard earlier. Anything big enough to have produced them was bound to make enough noise to be heard, if it was moving this deep in the forest. He doubted they would be able to sneak up on him.but still, better safe than sorry. He didn't know what else might be on the island.
The raptor scraped together some of the soft underbrush -- with an irrational wish for some of the even softer bedding that had been in his cage at the lab -- and curled up as best as he could. The search for the others could wait until tomorrow. He yawned expansively, showing his impressive array of teeth, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
* * *
"Looks like he's settling down," the man mused, as the image on the screen slowed and finally came to rest. "Are you outta here?"
She shrugged. "Yeah. Nothing left to see until tomorrow."
He helped her on with her coat. "Same time?"
"Same time. I'll bring some sandwiches."
Some of them were huge...long necks, even longer tails, and so heavy that the ground trembled when they moved. Some were only a little bigger than he was, with strange flat faces and mouths that ended in bills. There was a flock of tiny ones that wouldn't have come halfway to his hip. And there were ones about his size that walked on two legs. For a moment he thought he had found the other raptors; but these were plant-eaters, with necks too long and heads too small to be members of his species. He was disappointed. Still, he could just pick out the raptor-scent out from the tangled, confusing mixture. It was the only one that was familiar.
It didn't occur to him to wonder how he knew the bipedal dinosaurs were plant eaters, when he'd never encountered one before. It also didn't occur to him that he'd been nervous about the varied scents until he'd actually seen what they were. Once he saw them, he'd relaxed, knowing that none of them were a threat. *How* he knew didn't even come up.
It appeared that they were gathering themselves to move on for the night. No doubt they rested somewhere further from the water, so as not to be ambushed by carnivores coming there for an early-morning drink. That was probably a good idea, even for him -- there were still some rather menacing sounds coming from upriver. He decided to follow the others' example, and disappeared back into the forest, moving purposefully until he was well away from the river.
Talon searched until he'd found a relatively secluded spot to settle down for the night. It offered good cover and was fairly close to a fast-flowing stream. He was no longer concerned about the sounds he'd heard earlier. Anything big enough to have produced them was bound to make enough noise to be heard, if it was moving this deep in the forest. He doubted they would be able to sneak up on him.but still, better safe than sorry. He didn't know what else might be on the island.
The raptor scraped together some of the soft underbrush -- with an irrational wish for some of the even softer bedding that had been in his cage at the lab -- and curled up as best as he could. The search for the others could wait until tomorrow. He yawned expansively, showing his impressive array of teeth, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
* * *
"Looks like he's settling down," the man mused, as the image on the screen slowed and finally came to rest. "Are you outta here?"
She shrugged. "Yeah. Nothing left to see until tomorrow."
He helped her on with her coat. "Same time?"
"Same time. I'll bring some sandwiches."