Chapter XXV
Ambush
Cera blinked drowsy and jumped up the next moment. She had fallen asleep although this hadn't been her intention. She was a bit embarrassed, but her embarrassment diminished when she saw that she was not the only who had fallen asleep. Spike still snorted and Littlefoot was sleeping too. Ali looked as if she had awaked a short while ago. Only Petrie and Ducky who sat in the shadow of a tree seemed to be lively for a longer while. A look up to the sky let Cera recognize that the bright circle hadn't covered a long distance so it was not so much time that had passed. There Littlefoot opened his eyes. Petrie and Ducky stood up at once. Ducky awoke Spike and amazingly he woke up immediately this time. Littlefoot raised his head and smiled a little bit tormented when he noticed that everybody cast worried looks at him. Cera was delighted because this smiling was the first mien of Littlefoot that was joyous to a certain extend, she saw for a long while. Then Littlefoot's look met Cera's and it became more earnest again. Cera tried vainly to interpret that look. It was earnest, but nut hostile like it had been in the Great Valley. Surprise and relief were in this look and many other things Cera couldn't identify. What should she do, and what would Littlefoot do now? Petrie, Ducky, Spike and Ali looked at them expectantly. They both tried to find the right words and stepped uneasily from one foot on the other. Eventually Littlefoot made the beginning; without really noticing it he mumbled: "The sharptooth, it hadn't eaten you?" "No, of course not. Otherwise I wouldn't be here, would I?" Cera who hadn't understood the sense of Littlefoot's question answered. She couldn't know that Littlefoot and Ali had already taken her for dead. "You've saved us. Thanks", Littlefoot said a bit sheepishly. Ducky, Petrie, Spike and Ali changed a helpless look. Littlefoot and Cera still spoke very reserved, as if they had never seen each other before. And this wouldn't change as long as none of them did the first step to reconciliate. Cera wasn't pleased with the trend of this first conversation with Littlefoot since a long time ago too. "Yes...", she nearly whispered it. And then she was determined to break the thin ice-sheet that seemed to exist between her and Littlefoot. "Littlefoot, I'm...", she hesitated faltered. In Littlefoot's and the other's faces appeared horror and she felt the slightly tremors running through the ground. "Oh no!" she shouted. She didn't need to turn round and she didn't need to hear the roar of rage that sounded in the next instant to know that the sharptooth was behind her. None of them had thought of that the fall hadn't been approximately as fatal for the big sharptooth as it would have been for one them. It had only been unconsciously for some time and now it stormed up the slope much the more furiously. "Come on! Follow me!" cried Cera and cantered in direction of the descent to the dale; the others followed her at once. "I should have thought of that before!" shouted Ali a bit ashamed while she followed Cera. "When we run through the ravine we can probably leave it behind!" Cera shouted. Ali frightened as if she had just remembered something terrible. "But Cera the ravine is blocked! There is a boulder! We can't go by it!" Ali shouted after Cera. "Boulder does not lie there anymore!" croaked Petrie who had sat down on Spike's back. "Oh no, no, no, no, no!" Ducky who had jumped on Spike's back too corroborated Petrie's words hasty. Ali stopped and looked at Ducky and Petrie surprised when Spike overtook her. But the view of the approaching sharptooth let her come to the conclusion that there was no time for explanations. Ali simply had to believe the others. She followed Cera and Littlefoot, who ran close behind her, hasty overtaking Spike again.
The sharptooth pursued its victims as fast as it could, but nevertheless they would reach the dale at the end of the ravine before it would be able to catch up with them. And then they would escape through the not anymore blocked ravine through which it wouldn't be able to follow them. It was in the mood to weep when it saw the spikedtail with the flyer and the swimmer on it's back who had been the hindmost of it's victims, disappeared at the descend to the dale. But instead of weeping the sharptooth considered hasty. None of its victims could see it now. They would flee panicky through the ravine and if it would be able to be at the ravine's entrance first and cut the leafeaters way they would probably bump into it. With one leap the sharptooth jumped from the ledge. This time it landed safety on it's feet and went almost leisurely over to the ravine's entrance where it would waylay the leafeaters.
One by one Cera, Littlefoot and Ali followed by Spike with Ducky and Petrie on his back climbed down the wall of rock, jumping from one ledge to the next lower one. But suddenly Spike lost his balance skidded of and fell down. Petrie swung himself from Spike's back up into the air while Ducky shrieked and ducked behind Spike's backplates. Spike couldn't brake and so he dragged Ali, Littlefoot and Cera along with in his fall. Wedged to each other they landed on the dale's ground ungently. Ali managed to steady her first. She jumped up and ran on towards the ravine shouting, "We must reach the herd! There we'll be in safety! It's our only chance!" over her shoulder. Petrie flapped behind her and Spike with Ducky on his back followed her too after he had got up. Littlefoot remained behind staring frightened at Cera. The others hadn't even noticed it, but she had knocked her head against a rock during the fall. Cera had not at least today demonstrated that her head was able to sustain a lot, but maybe it was the unexpectedness of the last knock that made it serious. At all events Cera seemed to be very bemused. "Cera, stand up! We must get away here!" Littlefoot shouted and bumped her slightly with his head. Cera looked at him disconcerted. "Come on! We must get away here!" Littlefoot shouted again and for his relief Cera stood up on shaky legs and set in motion towards the ravine. He urged her to a higher speed. "Come on! We must hurry up!"
The sharptooth could hardly suppress an angry howling. It hadn't arrived at the ravine's entrance when it saw one longneck appearing out of it. Shortly behind flapped the flyer and the spikedtail with the swimmer sitting on its back followed close behind. They didn't seem to have noticed it. In the first instant the sharptooth wanted to pursue those leafeaters but then it remembered that there had to be another longneck and the threehorn. They would be enough to made a good snack. Moreover the sharptooth drove at the little threehorn that had dared to attack it. It took position aside the ravine, invisible for everybody who was in the ravine, but ready to pounce upon everybody who left it's cover.
Ali had arrived at the forest's border and halted to let her friends catch up with her. She twitched when she saw the sharptooth standing aside the ravine. Till now she hadn't even noticed it. What a luck that Spike had "accelerated" their descent, maybe they would have bumped into the sharptooth otherwise. But why didn't it pursue them? Hadn't it noted them either? Just that moment Petrie and Spike with Ducky caught up with her. But Cera and Littlefoot weren't along with them! Suddenly Ali felt very sick and she was unable to breath for some seconds. "Littlefoot! Cera!" she urged out. Spike howled up when he noticed Littlefoot's and Cera's lacking too. Ducky on his back became very pale and she clung to one of Spike's backplates so firmly that her knuckles bulged. Petrie starred at the lurking sharptooth. "Me must warn them!" he gasped, and flew back towards the ravine like a dart.
Ambush
Cera blinked drowsy and jumped up the next moment. She had fallen asleep although this hadn't been her intention. She was a bit embarrassed, but her embarrassment diminished when she saw that she was not the only who had fallen asleep. Spike still snorted and Littlefoot was sleeping too. Ali looked as if she had awaked a short while ago. Only Petrie and Ducky who sat in the shadow of a tree seemed to be lively for a longer while. A look up to the sky let Cera recognize that the bright circle hadn't covered a long distance so it was not so much time that had passed. There Littlefoot opened his eyes. Petrie and Ducky stood up at once. Ducky awoke Spike and amazingly he woke up immediately this time. Littlefoot raised his head and smiled a little bit tormented when he noticed that everybody cast worried looks at him. Cera was delighted because this smiling was the first mien of Littlefoot that was joyous to a certain extend, she saw for a long while. Then Littlefoot's look met Cera's and it became more earnest again. Cera tried vainly to interpret that look. It was earnest, but nut hostile like it had been in the Great Valley. Surprise and relief were in this look and many other things Cera couldn't identify. What should she do, and what would Littlefoot do now? Petrie, Ducky, Spike and Ali looked at them expectantly. They both tried to find the right words and stepped uneasily from one foot on the other. Eventually Littlefoot made the beginning; without really noticing it he mumbled: "The sharptooth, it hadn't eaten you?" "No, of course not. Otherwise I wouldn't be here, would I?" Cera who hadn't understood the sense of Littlefoot's question answered. She couldn't know that Littlefoot and Ali had already taken her for dead. "You've saved us. Thanks", Littlefoot said a bit sheepishly. Ducky, Petrie, Spike and Ali changed a helpless look. Littlefoot and Cera still spoke very reserved, as if they had never seen each other before. And this wouldn't change as long as none of them did the first step to reconciliate. Cera wasn't pleased with the trend of this first conversation with Littlefoot since a long time ago too. "Yes...", she nearly whispered it. And then she was determined to break the thin ice-sheet that seemed to exist between her and Littlefoot. "Littlefoot, I'm...", she hesitated faltered. In Littlefoot's and the other's faces appeared horror and she felt the slightly tremors running through the ground. "Oh no!" she shouted. She didn't need to turn round and she didn't need to hear the roar of rage that sounded in the next instant to know that the sharptooth was behind her. None of them had thought of that the fall hadn't been approximately as fatal for the big sharptooth as it would have been for one them. It had only been unconsciously for some time and now it stormed up the slope much the more furiously. "Come on! Follow me!" cried Cera and cantered in direction of the descent to the dale; the others followed her at once. "I should have thought of that before!" shouted Ali a bit ashamed while she followed Cera. "When we run through the ravine we can probably leave it behind!" Cera shouted. Ali frightened as if she had just remembered something terrible. "But Cera the ravine is blocked! There is a boulder! We can't go by it!" Ali shouted after Cera. "Boulder does not lie there anymore!" croaked Petrie who had sat down on Spike's back. "Oh no, no, no, no, no!" Ducky who had jumped on Spike's back too corroborated Petrie's words hasty. Ali stopped and looked at Ducky and Petrie surprised when Spike overtook her. But the view of the approaching sharptooth let her come to the conclusion that there was no time for explanations. Ali simply had to believe the others. She followed Cera and Littlefoot, who ran close behind her, hasty overtaking Spike again.
The sharptooth pursued its victims as fast as it could, but nevertheless they would reach the dale at the end of the ravine before it would be able to catch up with them. And then they would escape through the not anymore blocked ravine through which it wouldn't be able to follow them. It was in the mood to weep when it saw the spikedtail with the flyer and the swimmer on it's back who had been the hindmost of it's victims, disappeared at the descend to the dale. But instead of weeping the sharptooth considered hasty. None of its victims could see it now. They would flee panicky through the ravine and if it would be able to be at the ravine's entrance first and cut the leafeaters way they would probably bump into it. With one leap the sharptooth jumped from the ledge. This time it landed safety on it's feet and went almost leisurely over to the ravine's entrance where it would waylay the leafeaters.
One by one Cera, Littlefoot and Ali followed by Spike with Ducky and Petrie on his back climbed down the wall of rock, jumping from one ledge to the next lower one. But suddenly Spike lost his balance skidded of and fell down. Petrie swung himself from Spike's back up into the air while Ducky shrieked and ducked behind Spike's backplates. Spike couldn't brake and so he dragged Ali, Littlefoot and Cera along with in his fall. Wedged to each other they landed on the dale's ground ungently. Ali managed to steady her first. She jumped up and ran on towards the ravine shouting, "We must reach the herd! There we'll be in safety! It's our only chance!" over her shoulder. Petrie flapped behind her and Spike with Ducky on his back followed her too after he had got up. Littlefoot remained behind staring frightened at Cera. The others hadn't even noticed it, but she had knocked her head against a rock during the fall. Cera had not at least today demonstrated that her head was able to sustain a lot, but maybe it was the unexpectedness of the last knock that made it serious. At all events Cera seemed to be very bemused. "Cera, stand up! We must get away here!" Littlefoot shouted and bumped her slightly with his head. Cera looked at him disconcerted. "Come on! We must get away here!" Littlefoot shouted again and for his relief Cera stood up on shaky legs and set in motion towards the ravine. He urged her to a higher speed. "Come on! We must hurry up!"
The sharptooth could hardly suppress an angry howling. It hadn't arrived at the ravine's entrance when it saw one longneck appearing out of it. Shortly behind flapped the flyer and the spikedtail with the swimmer sitting on its back followed close behind. They didn't seem to have noticed it. In the first instant the sharptooth wanted to pursue those leafeaters but then it remembered that there had to be another longneck and the threehorn. They would be enough to made a good snack. Moreover the sharptooth drove at the little threehorn that had dared to attack it. It took position aside the ravine, invisible for everybody who was in the ravine, but ready to pounce upon everybody who left it's cover.
Ali had arrived at the forest's border and halted to let her friends catch up with her. She twitched when she saw the sharptooth standing aside the ravine. Till now she hadn't even noticed it. What a luck that Spike had "accelerated" their descent, maybe they would have bumped into the sharptooth otherwise. But why didn't it pursue them? Hadn't it noted them either? Just that moment Petrie and Spike with Ducky caught up with her. But Cera and Littlefoot weren't along with them! Suddenly Ali felt very sick and she was unable to breath for some seconds. "Littlefoot! Cera!" she urged out. Spike howled up when he noticed Littlefoot's and Cera's lacking too. Ducky on his back became very pale and she clung to one of Spike's backplates so firmly that her knuckles bulged. Petrie starred at the lurking sharptooth. "Me must warn them!" he gasped, and flew back towards the ravine like a dart.