Note: Sorry for the extremely long delay in getting this chapter out. I
had real-life problems like school, work, family, etc. Because of this, I
do not expect to update this story soon, but I plan on continuing this
story. I thank anyone who puts up with my lack of speed in updating this
story. But enough about that, here is the next chapter.
To Go Where No Man Has Gone Before: Dinotopia
Chapter 3: Journey to Sauropolis
Aaron twisted his body to face the new voice. His right hand drifted to the hand axe that still hung at his waist side. At the same time, Data started to rise while his own hand closed around his javelin and he moved it to a position so that he could throw it, if needed.
As they both prepared themselves for a confrontation, a man emerged from the surrounding woods. He appeared to be in his late 30's with a medium build. His face was covered by a thick, but well-trimmed brown beard. His hair was somewhat long, hanging just below his shoulders, but it was tied up into a tight braid to keep it from getting snagged by branches. He wore a tight-fitting tunic of a patched green and black pattern that made it hard for him to see in the forest. The tunic was belted at his waist with a piece of black-dyed rope. Attached to the rope on his right side was a pouch. On his back was a hiker's backpack, complete with sleeping bag, tent, comforter, as well as the main backpack. His pants were of the same pattern and were slightly baggy. Over his feet he wore black shoes made out of a leather-like material with black laces. In his left hand, he carried a wooden pole with a shine that spoke of being well worn.
He came into the clearing and he then sat down. "My friends, you can lay down your weapons. They are not needed here." He waited there and he saw that neither Aaron nor Data were lowering their weapons. He sighed, "I am sorry, but here on Dinotopia, there is no need for weapons."
Aaron looked perplexed. "Did you say 'Dinotopia'? I'm sorry, but it is hard for me to understand you. Your accent is horrible."
The man threw back his head and howled with laughter. "You should talk," he said, "your mouth sounds like it is full of mush. However, yes I did say Dinotopia. This is a place that, to our knowledge, has remained undiscovered by the rest of the world. Have you ever heard of Dinotopia?"
Data set his javelin down and started to search his internal database. To Aaron and the stranger, it looked like Data's eyes were rolling in his sockets. The stranger started to turn to Aaron when Data stopped.
"There has been no mention of Dinotopia in any records that I have reviewed."
The stranger looked at Data and nodded, "See there. How about you?"
Aaron looked away for a minute and then answered, "No, I have not."
The stranger nodded as if he expected that answer. "That will lead me to my next point. There is no getting off of the island. It has been tried. Nothing has worked. Basically, your previous lives are over. Whatever crimes or criminal activity you may have committed does not matter, so long as you do not continue such behavior here. Another main thing that you will find here is that we do not use any technology here. We use only the most basic of tools needed to complete our task. Finally, the reason we call it 'Dinotopia' is because dinosaurs live here. And they are not dumb brutes. They have been alive for almost two hundred twenty- five million years. They have evolved mentally to a point beyond what we humans have achieved. They have constructed a civilization that almost everyone who has arrived believes to be a utopia. They are smart and individualistic as any human. The only thing is that because of their mouths and throats, most of them cannot speak our language, but they all understand it. In time, I am certain you will understand their languages as well."
"However, I believe that the benefits far outweigh the losses. Here we have no war, no famine, no pestilence, and few diseases that cannot be cured, very little malcontents. Here everyone is given the choice of what career they want to do and the opportunities they need to achieve that option. This is also a place were everyone is treated the same. There are no races, no classes and gender does not matter. And the reason we have made these strides is because of the dinosaurs. Any questions?"
Data and Aaron turned and looked at each other, raised their eyebrows, and then returned to looking at the stranger. "Are you serious?" asked Aaron incredibly. "I mean, dinosaurs dies sixty-five million years ago, and I can understand if you are a no-tech*, but could you tell us where we are really and where we can go to find some help? Our ship sank over five days ago and we need to check in to see if the rest of the crew checked in or if a search party needs to be sent out to find the rest of our crew."
The stranger simply shook his head, "All dolphinbacks are like this, I am told, when they first arrive. Although our last dolphinback came here over three hundred years ago, during what I believe was being called at the time, 'The Third World War'. I guess it would just be better to show you than tell you. If nothing else, I will take you to a place where you can receive help. "If you would be so kind as to follow me."
Before the stranger started to move, Aaron asked, "I'm sorry, but may I have your name?"
"Oops. I forgot to mention that, didn't I? My name is Daniel. And what do you go by, if I may ask?"
Data opened his mouth to start speaking, but Aaron jumped in first, "My name is Aaron and my friend here goes by the name Data.
That being said, Daniel got up and waited for Data and Aaron to gather their belongings. Aaron looked over at Data and shrugged his shoulders. "What do you think?"
Data replied, "I would advise caution at this stage, but let's follow him, for the moment."
Aaron simply nodded his head. He then turned and spoke to Daniel, "Thank you for giving us your aid. However, we will keep our weapons with us, just in case."
Daniel just nodded and said, "Very well. I will not try to stop you. All I ask is that you imply restraint in your usage of those things. Do we agree on that?"
Aaron and Data nodded their heads yes. After that, Daniel set off at a somewhat brisk pace through the brush. While Daniel seemed to be right at home in the forest, Aaron and Data were not as good as Daniel, but they were pretty surefooted in the among the trees . Daniel seemed to flow through the woods, never stumbling, never getting hit in the head with a low-hanging branch. Data occasionally stepped on a twig, giving off a loud snap, while Aaron would stumble from time to time on roots that were hard to see in the shadows. Aaron, however, would use his javelin as a walking stick, catching himself before him fell, and using it to probe the ground in front of him.
After a while, Aaron decided to make some small talk with their guide.
"I have a question for you. How did you know we are not from around here?"
"It was a simple manner. I overheard your conversation and your accent gave me the suspicion that you two are not from around here, and it was confirmed by your clothing and the fact that you had conceived of having weapons."
Aaron looked at his guide's attire and then looked down at has own ragged clothing and "hmmm"ed. "Well those are fairly good reasons."
Aaron then slowed up a little bit, until he was side by side with Data. "Data," Aaron whispered, "until we get to a communication center, I believe that we should keep the fact that you are an android to ourselves."
"Agreed, but what should I say when he asks about my skin tone or eye color?"
"This man says that he has not had contact with the outside world since the Third World War. Let's say that you are a variation of human that appeared after the War. We will insinuate that you are a human mutation that developed, without actually saying that. I would also believe that it would be wise to keep First Contact and all subsequent contacts with other species a secret from Daniel and his friends until we have seen more of their culture. Finally, I would be very careful in exposing our level of technology to these people. We don't know what affect these things might have on their culture and I don't want to destroy it with things they do not need to know. I believe that is the Prime Directive, is it not."
"You are correct in your interpretation of the Prime Directive. I saw a similar situation turn out fairly poorly when we violated the Prime Directive on a primitive culture of humans who lived on an isolation colony. I will modify my speech accordingly."
"Good. I am glad we are on the same train of thought. I would suggest that we compare notes between each other on what we have said so we don't contradict each other and raise suspicion," concluded Aaron.
That being said, Aaron hurried his step to catch up with their guide. Daniel had noticed the fact that Aaron and Data had been in a private conversation, but figured they were just discussing their situation and besides it was private, so he was not going to stick his nose in. It was not the Dinotopian way. However, he hoped that the two would adjust. Some people had given completely to their new lives, while others could not let go of their old lives. But, whether they embraced Dinotopia enthusiastically or reluctantly, all eventually came around and found peace. He hoped these dolphinbacks would adapt quickly. They seemed nice enough.
Besides, he was curious about the outside world. Daniel wondered about the advancements and changes in thought, philosophy, and culture since the last dolphinbacks had arrived so long ago.
As the day wore on, the three travelers got to know each other more. Data and Aaron learned that Daniel is '17 fathers Irish' which they learned meant that the most recent dolphinback to enter into Daniel's family tree was a male and it happened 17 generations ago. He also talked about his youth and his experiences growing up with his parents and their dinosaurian partners. He described the intricate details and complexities that his parents had with their partners. While he was describing these details, Aaron just looked at Data and shrugged. Neither one knew what to make of this man and his delusions. However, they soon started to talk about their own lives with the gentle prompting of Daniel.
Aaron gave a brief history of his family and life. He talked about aspects of his childhood. He talked about his parents and the fact that they were dead. Then he talked about his college life and subsequent academia career. Data discussed the fact that he was a scientist and Operations Officer, but they only stated that he was the 2nd in command of a ship, not a starship. Data avoided his childhood, since he didn't have any memories of that time of his life. Data then went on to talk about his friends on board the Enterprise and some of their antics while on board. He described their conversational topics when they played poker, Commander Riker's continuing attempts to successfully master the trombone, to Doctor Crusher's plays and musicals that are put on in Ten Forward.
By mid-afternoon, the triad broke out of the forest and onto a sort of dirt road. It was the sort of trail that was made from thousands of feet over hundreds of years and has been packed down until it was harder than reinforced steel. However, there were two very deep rivets in the road from wagon wheel tracks. But what drew the attention of the two castaways was that in the ever-present dirt that covered the road were footprints. Some of them looked like, elephant tracks, but these tracks were made by a creature that was easily twice as big as an elephant. They looked similar to the tracks the castaways had seen on the beach. Others were much more pointed, like human's feet and there were spots were claws had made an impression. Finally, a couple of tracks were very pointed and the claw marks were deep and showed the impression of very sharp appendages. Interwoven with these tracks were the imprints of human boots. The most recent footprints were huge and rounded. They looked like the tracks the temporarily-transplanted travelers had been following on the beach. They went off to the left.
Daniel pointed at the tracks and stated, "This is a heavily traveled route from Chandara to Sauropolis. Sauropolis is about a day's walk from here." Daniel pointed of to the left. "I will take you there. When we arrive, there will be people there who are much more able to answer your questions and make sure that you are cared for."
Aaron looked both ways down the road, and then turned to their guide. "You said that this is a main route, didn't you?" After Daniel nodded yes, Aaron continued, "And you said before that you use only the simplest of tools to do chores." Daniel nodded yes again. Aaron then went on to say, "If that is so, then I expect that you use simple wagons for heavy hauling of goods and materials." After a third nod from Daniel, Aaron concluded, "I then expect that there must be some sort of way station or rest area somewhere nearby for people to rest and refresh themselves. Am I correct?" After a final nod from their guide, Aaron suggested, "Why don't we go to one of these places. There should be one nearby and maybe we can get a ride into this Saurpolis."
Daniel looked quizzically at them and then spoke, "That makes sense. That way you will have others who can explain things better than me. And, by the way, it is Sauropolis, not Saurpolis. However, it is more practical if we were to just make camp here and wait for morning. We do not know if anyone is traveling the road and moving around would just get us further away from the city. We will set up camp here. Got a problem with that?"
Data stepped in, "That is an agreeable solution. This way, if a wagon or something comes by, we can ask for a ride. We should set up camp over there," Data points to a clearing next to the road, but far enough away from it so that they would not get trampled if they overslept. "I am sure that you both are hungry. We did not stop for a lunch earlier so your bodies should be demanding food. Let us go over there and set up sleeping arrangements." With that being said, Data strided out with authority across the road. Daniel and Aaron had no choice but to follow him.
After they arrived at the clearing, they set about setting up a campsite. Data started looking around for some burnable material, while Daniel dug out a fire pit and Aaron set aside the remainder of his food to make a meal. Soon they had a cherry blaze going and were enjoying a meal of a sort of vegetable stew. The stew was made using some of Daniel's food supply, with Aaron adding a few items of his own. The stew was cooked over the fire in a hiker's pot. While Daniel and Aaron sat eating using wooden bowls and spoons, Data ate only a portion of the food given to him. He ate only so he wouldn't seem so out of place, but he ate only enough to replace certain fluids in his body that were running low on. The rest of it ended up on the ground, out of sight. Soon they finished eating and decided to settle in for the night. Daniel pulled out a blanket and some sort of comforter that he used as a barrier between himself and the ground. Aaron was stuck sleeping the same way he had before. Data leaned back against a nearby tree and went into standby mode. Both he and Aaron had a spear close at hand, just in case, but they were not disturbed all night.
Aaron awoke to the sun shining into his eyes. He started to rub his hands over his face, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He sat up and stretched his arms and shoulders out, flexing his muscles after sleeping on the hard ground. After doing that, he rolled out of his makeshift nest and got up. He looked up to see that Daniel was already up and had re-stoked the fire and was cooking some sort of concoction over the fire in his hiker's pot. Upon further analysis, he discovered that it was the leftovers from last night's stew. As he looked for Data, Aaron saw him sitting over by the road, looking both ways. Aaron walked up to Daniel and knelt down next to him.
"So what is the plan for today?" asked Aaron.
Daniel continued to stir breakfast and replied, "We eat, we break camp, and then we start walking. If we are lucky, we will get a ride. But if we don't, we should reach Sauropolis by nightfall. Once there, we should be able to find you some lodging as well as a few changes of clothes."
"Ok. Well, let's get started, shall we?"
Daniel just handed Aaron a bowl and spoon. Then he ladled out a helping of the stew and placed it into Aaron's bowl. Aaron took his meal and sat down to eat. Daniel served up a bowl and looked over to Data.
"Hey Data, stew's on. Here's your breakfast." Daniel set Data's bowl down and then reached for his own bowl. Data took one last look down the road and then returned to the campsite and picked up his bowl. He then walked back to the road, looking as though he was still on lookout for a ride to the city, but he also used the distance to hide the food he was given so it would not be discovered that he was not eating like a human should eat.
When everyone had more or less finished their breakfast, they started to pack up and break camp. The fire was put out and buried. The trash was collected and disposed of. Everyone collected their items. Daniel packed up his backpack with his sleeping supplies as well as his cooking pot, bowls, and spoons after he had washed them out, as well as he could. Data picked up his life preserver, which he had given to Aaron to sleep on. Aaron picked up his own life preserver and took a couple of minutes to review some of Data's uploaded schematics on his PADD to make sure he understood a couple of Data's thousands of systems. Aaron made sure that Daniel did not see his PADD. When everyone had finished, they got to their feet and started walking.
We find our three travelers walking down a well-beaten road. They were walking in the same order that they traveled to in the woods. Daniel walked and talked intermittently. The rest of his time, he spent looking up and down the road, almost as if he was looking for something. Aaron, who was walking behind Daniel, concentrated instead on the local plant- life. He was also just enjoying himself. He felt that he could get in touch with nature here. Carrying up the rear was Data. Data simply walked. He processed his surroundings, but did not react to anything with anymore than idle curiosity. Aaron noticed that Daniel was looking around. He was curious about what Daniel was looking for, but did not ask because he did not want to disturb the tranquility of the world around him. However, as time went on, his curiosity overcame his wish to preserve the tranquility. He ran up to Daniel and asked him, "What you looking for? A ride?" Daniel turned his attention to Aaron and replied, "Yes I am." Aaron mouth Oh, then went on to his second question. "When do you think we will be in sight of Sauropolis. Daniel looked ahead, looked at his sides and then said, "A few more hours still."
They continued on their journey. As the sun was sinking low on the horizon, the three distance walkers crested over a small hill and came into sight of an amazing sight. There, below them, spread out in front of them was Sauropolis. Daniel had seen the city many times before, but he still stood in awe every time he gazed at the sight. However, he had the foresight to pull his gaze away from the city and look at his two traveling companions' faces as they set their gaze on the city for the first time. Aaron's eyes were full of wonder and amazement. Data's face, however, was something very different. His face did show signs of wonderment, but he also had the look of puzzlement in his face. Also, his head jerked around in a very stiff motion, as if his head was on a track or roller and could only move in certain directions. He reminded Daniel of a bird looking at something that it hadn't seen before. Daniel shrugged his shoulders, figuring that's what Data did when he came in contact with a new experience. He then turned his eyes back to the view.
Aaron couldn't talk about what he saw. He later said that words were not enough to describe what he experienced. However, what he saw was a conglomerate of various cultures and civilizations. He saw ancient Greek columns and temples with Roman Imperial villas and aqueducts, to Japanese palaces and buildings that would not be noticed in Egypt. He also saw buildings that looked Aztec or Mayan and even a couple that looked like they came from India. Aaron would never have believed it, but each of the different buildings did not make this city look like a hodgepodge of cultures and buildings, all disjointed and out of place. It, instead, looked like a complete city, whole and uniquely distinct It made a statement to Aaron that each culture that existed on Earth was not separate and unique. Instead, each civilization was part of something bigger, greater. It said that all civilizations were part of the tapestry of humanity. He saw a book in the making just looking at the city.
However, something else drew his eyes. Moving through the city were cranes of living flesh. He saw what most people imagine as the classic shape of the plant-eating dinosaur. He saw the long neck tapering off to a smaller head with the nose above the eyes. However, the necks were not gray as most people thought. Instead, they had colors like green, brown, red, purple, and others with some of them in patches. They also had banners, streamers, and other decorations that wrapped around them. Aaron had a good view of a boulevard. As he looked down on the street, he saw smaller dinosaurs walking up and down the street. He saw Stegosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Triceratops, and Hadrasaurs of all types and sizes walking side by side with humans. He was just amazed. Everything Daniel had told him before had been true. But how could it be true. It did not make sense.
Data looked over the city. He observed architecture based from many old Earth civilizations. He saw Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Sumerian, Persian, Incan, Mayan, Aztec, Hittite, Assyrian, French, German, Spanish, Turkish, Russian, Magadhaen, Kosalaen, Mauryan, Ch'in, Han, T'ang, Sung, Ming, Mongol, Guptan, Heinan., American, and many others from all points in history and geography. However, his emotion chip flooded his positronic brain with the emotions of wonderment and awe.
But what really caught his eye was the creatures. They appeared to be in the order Saurischia, and Ornithischia, with several suborders. He saw sub-orders Ankylosauia, Ornithopoda, Pachycephalosauria, Stegosauria, and Theropoda. He saw many species with common names like Ankylosaurus, Stegosaurus, Pachycephalosaurus, Iguanodons, Apatosaurus, a couple of Velociraptors, Hadrosaurus, and Gallimimus. It made it much more likely that Daniel was telling the truth. This made things a lot more difficult. He now had to adapt to a unique and isolated community. He had to figure out how he and Aaron arrived here, where here was in relation to Earth, get in touch with Starfleet, and see if he could get back home. But first, Data decided, he would look at the city and learn all he could.
* no-tech: a movement consisting of people who believe that technology has led people astray from what is truly important. They believe that mankind should only use the least amount of technology needed. While they do realize that technology has given them many things that they could not have achieved otherwise, like medicine and space travel, they abstain from using technology except for dire situations, like when a person would die without advanced treatment. However, they believe that nature provides all that they need.
To Go Where No Man Has Gone Before: Dinotopia
Chapter 3: Journey to Sauropolis
Aaron twisted his body to face the new voice. His right hand drifted to the hand axe that still hung at his waist side. At the same time, Data started to rise while his own hand closed around his javelin and he moved it to a position so that he could throw it, if needed.
As they both prepared themselves for a confrontation, a man emerged from the surrounding woods. He appeared to be in his late 30's with a medium build. His face was covered by a thick, but well-trimmed brown beard. His hair was somewhat long, hanging just below his shoulders, but it was tied up into a tight braid to keep it from getting snagged by branches. He wore a tight-fitting tunic of a patched green and black pattern that made it hard for him to see in the forest. The tunic was belted at his waist with a piece of black-dyed rope. Attached to the rope on his right side was a pouch. On his back was a hiker's backpack, complete with sleeping bag, tent, comforter, as well as the main backpack. His pants were of the same pattern and were slightly baggy. Over his feet he wore black shoes made out of a leather-like material with black laces. In his left hand, he carried a wooden pole with a shine that spoke of being well worn.
He came into the clearing and he then sat down. "My friends, you can lay down your weapons. They are not needed here." He waited there and he saw that neither Aaron nor Data were lowering their weapons. He sighed, "I am sorry, but here on Dinotopia, there is no need for weapons."
Aaron looked perplexed. "Did you say 'Dinotopia'? I'm sorry, but it is hard for me to understand you. Your accent is horrible."
The man threw back his head and howled with laughter. "You should talk," he said, "your mouth sounds like it is full of mush. However, yes I did say Dinotopia. This is a place that, to our knowledge, has remained undiscovered by the rest of the world. Have you ever heard of Dinotopia?"
Data set his javelin down and started to search his internal database. To Aaron and the stranger, it looked like Data's eyes were rolling in his sockets. The stranger started to turn to Aaron when Data stopped.
"There has been no mention of Dinotopia in any records that I have reviewed."
The stranger looked at Data and nodded, "See there. How about you?"
Aaron looked away for a minute and then answered, "No, I have not."
The stranger nodded as if he expected that answer. "That will lead me to my next point. There is no getting off of the island. It has been tried. Nothing has worked. Basically, your previous lives are over. Whatever crimes or criminal activity you may have committed does not matter, so long as you do not continue such behavior here. Another main thing that you will find here is that we do not use any technology here. We use only the most basic of tools needed to complete our task. Finally, the reason we call it 'Dinotopia' is because dinosaurs live here. And they are not dumb brutes. They have been alive for almost two hundred twenty- five million years. They have evolved mentally to a point beyond what we humans have achieved. They have constructed a civilization that almost everyone who has arrived believes to be a utopia. They are smart and individualistic as any human. The only thing is that because of their mouths and throats, most of them cannot speak our language, but they all understand it. In time, I am certain you will understand their languages as well."
"However, I believe that the benefits far outweigh the losses. Here we have no war, no famine, no pestilence, and few diseases that cannot be cured, very little malcontents. Here everyone is given the choice of what career they want to do and the opportunities they need to achieve that option. This is also a place were everyone is treated the same. There are no races, no classes and gender does not matter. And the reason we have made these strides is because of the dinosaurs. Any questions?"
Data and Aaron turned and looked at each other, raised their eyebrows, and then returned to looking at the stranger. "Are you serious?" asked Aaron incredibly. "I mean, dinosaurs dies sixty-five million years ago, and I can understand if you are a no-tech*, but could you tell us where we are really and where we can go to find some help? Our ship sank over five days ago and we need to check in to see if the rest of the crew checked in or if a search party needs to be sent out to find the rest of our crew."
The stranger simply shook his head, "All dolphinbacks are like this, I am told, when they first arrive. Although our last dolphinback came here over three hundred years ago, during what I believe was being called at the time, 'The Third World War'. I guess it would just be better to show you than tell you. If nothing else, I will take you to a place where you can receive help. "If you would be so kind as to follow me."
Before the stranger started to move, Aaron asked, "I'm sorry, but may I have your name?"
"Oops. I forgot to mention that, didn't I? My name is Daniel. And what do you go by, if I may ask?"
Data opened his mouth to start speaking, but Aaron jumped in first, "My name is Aaron and my friend here goes by the name Data.
That being said, Daniel got up and waited for Data and Aaron to gather their belongings. Aaron looked over at Data and shrugged his shoulders. "What do you think?"
Data replied, "I would advise caution at this stage, but let's follow him, for the moment."
Aaron simply nodded his head. He then turned and spoke to Daniel, "Thank you for giving us your aid. However, we will keep our weapons with us, just in case."
Daniel just nodded and said, "Very well. I will not try to stop you. All I ask is that you imply restraint in your usage of those things. Do we agree on that?"
Aaron and Data nodded their heads yes. After that, Daniel set off at a somewhat brisk pace through the brush. While Daniel seemed to be right at home in the forest, Aaron and Data were not as good as Daniel, but they were pretty surefooted in the among the trees . Daniel seemed to flow through the woods, never stumbling, never getting hit in the head with a low-hanging branch. Data occasionally stepped on a twig, giving off a loud snap, while Aaron would stumble from time to time on roots that were hard to see in the shadows. Aaron, however, would use his javelin as a walking stick, catching himself before him fell, and using it to probe the ground in front of him.
After a while, Aaron decided to make some small talk with their guide.
"I have a question for you. How did you know we are not from around here?"
"It was a simple manner. I overheard your conversation and your accent gave me the suspicion that you two are not from around here, and it was confirmed by your clothing and the fact that you had conceived of having weapons."
Aaron looked at his guide's attire and then looked down at has own ragged clothing and "hmmm"ed. "Well those are fairly good reasons."
Aaron then slowed up a little bit, until he was side by side with Data. "Data," Aaron whispered, "until we get to a communication center, I believe that we should keep the fact that you are an android to ourselves."
"Agreed, but what should I say when he asks about my skin tone or eye color?"
"This man says that he has not had contact with the outside world since the Third World War. Let's say that you are a variation of human that appeared after the War. We will insinuate that you are a human mutation that developed, without actually saying that. I would also believe that it would be wise to keep First Contact and all subsequent contacts with other species a secret from Daniel and his friends until we have seen more of their culture. Finally, I would be very careful in exposing our level of technology to these people. We don't know what affect these things might have on their culture and I don't want to destroy it with things they do not need to know. I believe that is the Prime Directive, is it not."
"You are correct in your interpretation of the Prime Directive. I saw a similar situation turn out fairly poorly when we violated the Prime Directive on a primitive culture of humans who lived on an isolation colony. I will modify my speech accordingly."
"Good. I am glad we are on the same train of thought. I would suggest that we compare notes between each other on what we have said so we don't contradict each other and raise suspicion," concluded Aaron.
That being said, Aaron hurried his step to catch up with their guide. Daniel had noticed the fact that Aaron and Data had been in a private conversation, but figured they were just discussing their situation and besides it was private, so he was not going to stick his nose in. It was not the Dinotopian way. However, he hoped that the two would adjust. Some people had given completely to their new lives, while others could not let go of their old lives. But, whether they embraced Dinotopia enthusiastically or reluctantly, all eventually came around and found peace. He hoped these dolphinbacks would adapt quickly. They seemed nice enough.
Besides, he was curious about the outside world. Daniel wondered about the advancements and changes in thought, philosophy, and culture since the last dolphinbacks had arrived so long ago.
As the day wore on, the three travelers got to know each other more. Data and Aaron learned that Daniel is '17 fathers Irish' which they learned meant that the most recent dolphinback to enter into Daniel's family tree was a male and it happened 17 generations ago. He also talked about his youth and his experiences growing up with his parents and their dinosaurian partners. He described the intricate details and complexities that his parents had with their partners. While he was describing these details, Aaron just looked at Data and shrugged. Neither one knew what to make of this man and his delusions. However, they soon started to talk about their own lives with the gentle prompting of Daniel.
Aaron gave a brief history of his family and life. He talked about aspects of his childhood. He talked about his parents and the fact that they were dead. Then he talked about his college life and subsequent academia career. Data discussed the fact that he was a scientist and Operations Officer, but they only stated that he was the 2nd in command of a ship, not a starship. Data avoided his childhood, since he didn't have any memories of that time of his life. Data then went on to talk about his friends on board the Enterprise and some of their antics while on board. He described their conversational topics when they played poker, Commander Riker's continuing attempts to successfully master the trombone, to Doctor Crusher's plays and musicals that are put on in Ten Forward.
By mid-afternoon, the triad broke out of the forest and onto a sort of dirt road. It was the sort of trail that was made from thousands of feet over hundreds of years and has been packed down until it was harder than reinforced steel. However, there were two very deep rivets in the road from wagon wheel tracks. But what drew the attention of the two castaways was that in the ever-present dirt that covered the road were footprints. Some of them looked like, elephant tracks, but these tracks were made by a creature that was easily twice as big as an elephant. They looked similar to the tracks the castaways had seen on the beach. Others were much more pointed, like human's feet and there were spots were claws had made an impression. Finally, a couple of tracks were very pointed and the claw marks were deep and showed the impression of very sharp appendages. Interwoven with these tracks were the imprints of human boots. The most recent footprints were huge and rounded. They looked like the tracks the temporarily-transplanted travelers had been following on the beach. They went off to the left.
Daniel pointed at the tracks and stated, "This is a heavily traveled route from Chandara to Sauropolis. Sauropolis is about a day's walk from here." Daniel pointed of to the left. "I will take you there. When we arrive, there will be people there who are much more able to answer your questions and make sure that you are cared for."
Aaron looked both ways down the road, and then turned to their guide. "You said that this is a main route, didn't you?" After Daniel nodded yes, Aaron continued, "And you said before that you use only the simplest of tools to do chores." Daniel nodded yes again. Aaron then went on to say, "If that is so, then I expect that you use simple wagons for heavy hauling of goods and materials." After a third nod from Daniel, Aaron concluded, "I then expect that there must be some sort of way station or rest area somewhere nearby for people to rest and refresh themselves. Am I correct?" After a final nod from their guide, Aaron suggested, "Why don't we go to one of these places. There should be one nearby and maybe we can get a ride into this Saurpolis."
Daniel looked quizzically at them and then spoke, "That makes sense. That way you will have others who can explain things better than me. And, by the way, it is Sauropolis, not Saurpolis. However, it is more practical if we were to just make camp here and wait for morning. We do not know if anyone is traveling the road and moving around would just get us further away from the city. We will set up camp here. Got a problem with that?"
Data stepped in, "That is an agreeable solution. This way, if a wagon or something comes by, we can ask for a ride. We should set up camp over there," Data points to a clearing next to the road, but far enough away from it so that they would not get trampled if they overslept. "I am sure that you both are hungry. We did not stop for a lunch earlier so your bodies should be demanding food. Let us go over there and set up sleeping arrangements." With that being said, Data strided out with authority across the road. Daniel and Aaron had no choice but to follow him.
After they arrived at the clearing, they set about setting up a campsite. Data started looking around for some burnable material, while Daniel dug out a fire pit and Aaron set aside the remainder of his food to make a meal. Soon they had a cherry blaze going and were enjoying a meal of a sort of vegetable stew. The stew was made using some of Daniel's food supply, with Aaron adding a few items of his own. The stew was cooked over the fire in a hiker's pot. While Daniel and Aaron sat eating using wooden bowls and spoons, Data ate only a portion of the food given to him. He ate only so he wouldn't seem so out of place, but he ate only enough to replace certain fluids in his body that were running low on. The rest of it ended up on the ground, out of sight. Soon they finished eating and decided to settle in for the night. Daniel pulled out a blanket and some sort of comforter that he used as a barrier between himself and the ground. Aaron was stuck sleeping the same way he had before. Data leaned back against a nearby tree and went into standby mode. Both he and Aaron had a spear close at hand, just in case, but they were not disturbed all night.
Aaron awoke to the sun shining into his eyes. He started to rub his hands over his face, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He sat up and stretched his arms and shoulders out, flexing his muscles after sleeping on the hard ground. After doing that, he rolled out of his makeshift nest and got up. He looked up to see that Daniel was already up and had re-stoked the fire and was cooking some sort of concoction over the fire in his hiker's pot. Upon further analysis, he discovered that it was the leftovers from last night's stew. As he looked for Data, Aaron saw him sitting over by the road, looking both ways. Aaron walked up to Daniel and knelt down next to him.
"So what is the plan for today?" asked Aaron.
Daniel continued to stir breakfast and replied, "We eat, we break camp, and then we start walking. If we are lucky, we will get a ride. But if we don't, we should reach Sauropolis by nightfall. Once there, we should be able to find you some lodging as well as a few changes of clothes."
"Ok. Well, let's get started, shall we?"
Daniel just handed Aaron a bowl and spoon. Then he ladled out a helping of the stew and placed it into Aaron's bowl. Aaron took his meal and sat down to eat. Daniel served up a bowl and looked over to Data.
"Hey Data, stew's on. Here's your breakfast." Daniel set Data's bowl down and then reached for his own bowl. Data took one last look down the road and then returned to the campsite and picked up his bowl. He then walked back to the road, looking as though he was still on lookout for a ride to the city, but he also used the distance to hide the food he was given so it would not be discovered that he was not eating like a human should eat.
When everyone had more or less finished their breakfast, they started to pack up and break camp. The fire was put out and buried. The trash was collected and disposed of. Everyone collected their items. Daniel packed up his backpack with his sleeping supplies as well as his cooking pot, bowls, and spoons after he had washed them out, as well as he could. Data picked up his life preserver, which he had given to Aaron to sleep on. Aaron picked up his own life preserver and took a couple of minutes to review some of Data's uploaded schematics on his PADD to make sure he understood a couple of Data's thousands of systems. Aaron made sure that Daniel did not see his PADD. When everyone had finished, they got to their feet and started walking.
We find our three travelers walking down a well-beaten road. They were walking in the same order that they traveled to in the woods. Daniel walked and talked intermittently. The rest of his time, he spent looking up and down the road, almost as if he was looking for something. Aaron, who was walking behind Daniel, concentrated instead on the local plant- life. He was also just enjoying himself. He felt that he could get in touch with nature here. Carrying up the rear was Data. Data simply walked. He processed his surroundings, but did not react to anything with anymore than idle curiosity. Aaron noticed that Daniel was looking around. He was curious about what Daniel was looking for, but did not ask because he did not want to disturb the tranquility of the world around him. However, as time went on, his curiosity overcame his wish to preserve the tranquility. He ran up to Daniel and asked him, "What you looking for? A ride?" Daniel turned his attention to Aaron and replied, "Yes I am." Aaron mouth Oh, then went on to his second question. "When do you think we will be in sight of Sauropolis. Daniel looked ahead, looked at his sides and then said, "A few more hours still."
They continued on their journey. As the sun was sinking low on the horizon, the three distance walkers crested over a small hill and came into sight of an amazing sight. There, below them, spread out in front of them was Sauropolis. Daniel had seen the city many times before, but he still stood in awe every time he gazed at the sight. However, he had the foresight to pull his gaze away from the city and look at his two traveling companions' faces as they set their gaze on the city for the first time. Aaron's eyes were full of wonder and amazement. Data's face, however, was something very different. His face did show signs of wonderment, but he also had the look of puzzlement in his face. Also, his head jerked around in a very stiff motion, as if his head was on a track or roller and could only move in certain directions. He reminded Daniel of a bird looking at something that it hadn't seen before. Daniel shrugged his shoulders, figuring that's what Data did when he came in contact with a new experience. He then turned his eyes back to the view.
Aaron couldn't talk about what he saw. He later said that words were not enough to describe what he experienced. However, what he saw was a conglomerate of various cultures and civilizations. He saw ancient Greek columns and temples with Roman Imperial villas and aqueducts, to Japanese palaces and buildings that would not be noticed in Egypt. He also saw buildings that looked Aztec or Mayan and even a couple that looked like they came from India. Aaron would never have believed it, but each of the different buildings did not make this city look like a hodgepodge of cultures and buildings, all disjointed and out of place. It, instead, looked like a complete city, whole and uniquely distinct It made a statement to Aaron that each culture that existed on Earth was not separate and unique. Instead, each civilization was part of something bigger, greater. It said that all civilizations were part of the tapestry of humanity. He saw a book in the making just looking at the city.
However, something else drew his eyes. Moving through the city were cranes of living flesh. He saw what most people imagine as the classic shape of the plant-eating dinosaur. He saw the long neck tapering off to a smaller head with the nose above the eyes. However, the necks were not gray as most people thought. Instead, they had colors like green, brown, red, purple, and others with some of them in patches. They also had banners, streamers, and other decorations that wrapped around them. Aaron had a good view of a boulevard. As he looked down on the street, he saw smaller dinosaurs walking up and down the street. He saw Stegosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Triceratops, and Hadrasaurs of all types and sizes walking side by side with humans. He was just amazed. Everything Daniel had told him before had been true. But how could it be true. It did not make sense.
Data looked over the city. He observed architecture based from many old Earth civilizations. He saw Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Sumerian, Persian, Incan, Mayan, Aztec, Hittite, Assyrian, French, German, Spanish, Turkish, Russian, Magadhaen, Kosalaen, Mauryan, Ch'in, Han, T'ang, Sung, Ming, Mongol, Guptan, Heinan., American, and many others from all points in history and geography. However, his emotion chip flooded his positronic brain with the emotions of wonderment and awe.
But what really caught his eye was the creatures. They appeared to be in the order Saurischia, and Ornithischia, with several suborders. He saw sub-orders Ankylosauia, Ornithopoda, Pachycephalosauria, Stegosauria, and Theropoda. He saw many species with common names like Ankylosaurus, Stegosaurus, Pachycephalosaurus, Iguanodons, Apatosaurus, a couple of Velociraptors, Hadrosaurus, and Gallimimus. It made it much more likely that Daniel was telling the truth. This made things a lot more difficult. He now had to adapt to a unique and isolated community. He had to figure out how he and Aaron arrived here, where here was in relation to Earth, get in touch with Starfleet, and see if he could get back home. But first, Data decided, he would look at the city and learn all he could.
* no-tech: a movement consisting of people who believe that technology has led people astray from what is truly important. They believe that mankind should only use the least amount of technology needed. While they do realize that technology has given them many things that they could not have achieved otherwise, like medicine and space travel, they abstain from using technology except for dire situations, like when a person would die without advanced treatment. However, they believe that nature provides all that they need.