Wandering back into the Green Meadow, Littlefoot and the rest of the gang found all the adult dinosaurs staring promisingly at them. Just from the looks on their faces, each one of them could tell they were all expecting them to have brought Jason back. One by one, they lowered their heads shamefully. The group slowly broke up and they all walked dolefully back to their parents. No one speaking a word. The entire meadow seemed to be hung in a degraded suspense like time was non-existent. Littlefoot strolled over to his grandparents whimpering as if he had a thorn in his foot. He felt he had had his very life stolen from him. He stared across the field and saw his friends being comforted by their parents. He could tell they were all feeling the same but the crushing thought that Jason has now been captured by potentially dangerous creatures seemed even more devastating for him. Grandpa and Grandma Longneck looked solemnly at each other. They could tell Littlefoot was obviously very upset but neither of them could think of anything to say to him as he rubbed his head against their ankles for comfort.
"Why did they take him away? They treated him like he was nothing! Nothing at all!" he whinged.
"Now, now Littlefoot. You must be strong. I'm sure those other humans will not do anything to harm him," Grandma Longneck said caringly, bring her head down to meet his.
"Jason was right. Humans are untrustworthy killers!"
"What! We saw them carrying Jason away but was he…?"
"N-no. I don't think Jason is dead. He's just sleeping."
"How do you know Littlefoot?" Grandpa Longneck asked now bowing his head too.
"He spoke to me as they were taking him away," Littlefoot sighed heavily. Despite the soothing tone of his grandparents' voices, they were completely lost in the occurrence of Jason's kidnapping. He wandered back into the centre of the meadow hoping that one of the others would come out to meet him. Sure enough, Ducky and Spike walked over in a similar heavy hearted fashion. Ducky tried to make eye contact with Littlefoot with a warm, brave smile. Littlefoot tried his best to make his smile just as convincing but he knew it wasn't sincere. Cera marched over proudly with the threehorn twins but she couldn't hold her posture for long once she looked at everyone else's glum expressions.
"Oh come on! What's with you guys? He's not even one of us and now he's with his own kind. Why all the sad faces?" she barked trying to create conversion.
"He may not be a one of us Cera, but he is still our friend," Littlefoot replied rather sternly just as Petrie arrived riding on top Ali.
"But those humans have him back now, why should we bother worrying about him anymore?"
"Those humans were not very nice to Jason, oh no, no, no. They hurt him and put him to sleep even though he did not want to go," Ducky protested sorrowfully.
"Yeah. Those humans really mean and nasty. Me sure no want to get in way of them," Petrie said.
"Well, my dad says that we should just leave the humans to get on with what they have to do so they will leave as quickly as possible and I think so too. They can just go back to wherever they came from so everything can get back to normal."
"That's what I'm afraid of," Littlefoot said gravely. The group fell silent and all eyes focused on Cera.
"No-ie no, no Grampee Threebe Cerie!" Dinah whined.
"Us-ie no-ie, no bye, bye Two-Legs," Dana added. Even without a translation from Ducky, the gang could tell that the two threehorn twins did not want Jason to go; and as it happened, neither did any of them.
"Oh who cares? Even if Jason didn't go with them, what can we do? Those humans are way too dangerous to speak to, and even if we did, I doubt they'd let Jason go. There's nothing we can do about it?" Littlefoot was about to reply but the words never reached his voice. He just sighed in defeat. In the back of his mind, he began to wonder what sort of torture the humans could be putting Jason through.
*
"Lemme outta here! Do you hear me? You can't do this! Get me out of this cage right now!" Jason screamed in anger.
"Shut it kid! Save your breath!" a private yelled at Jason as he rattled the iron bars of his cell.
"What do you guys want with me? What have I done to deserve this?" he pleaded.
"You'll find out in due course. Now pipe down before I put a bullet in your head!"
"You don't scare me! Your captain says you need me alive. Now let me go!" Jason shouted defiantly. The patrolling soldier ignored him and left the jail area, slamming the thick, blue door behind him. Jason sighed and collapsed on a small bed in the corner of his cell. The sheets were dirty as were the walls and floor that were caked in grime and obviously hadn't been cleaned for a while. Jason held his head in his hands trying to piece together what had happened between him being tranquillised in the thicket and him finding himself lying face down in a disgusting prison cell the next moment. His body ached as if he had just had to reanimate all his limbs having just woken up from a coma. A splitting headache erupted on one side of his brain which made him flinch in excruciating pain. As he reached up to hold his hurting head, he realised that part of his hair was missing from just above his temple. His arms also bore small, bloodstained holes as if needles had been poked into his skin. What had they done to him? Had they experimented on him whilst he was unconscious? If so, what had they injected into him, or alternatively, removed from him? His head burned again, forcing the thoughts to stop. Nothing seemed clear or made any sense. Just as the pain subsided for a brief moment, Jason heard the door leading into the cells click and watched it swing inwards. As he looked up, he saw the same three soldiers that he met in the Green Meadow accompanied by two other men. One was a short, thin, old-looking man with a crest of white, wiry hair encircling his bald head with his thin-rimmed, rectangle glasses perched on the end of his nose in front of probing grey eyes. He wore a large white lab coat that hung off his skinny shoulders and seemed much too big for him with the Red Phoenix Labs logo sewn onto the left breast pocket; he was clearly one of the scientists that worked for the corporation. Under the logo was a black badge that read: "Professor Xander Baxter". The man standing next to the old professor was a tall, burly man who looked in his early forties. His face was tight and pursed up in a businessmanly fashion. His eyes were a cold blue which seemed completely mismatched with his trimmed, black, oily hair that was parted in the centre and drooped down around the side of his head. Wearing a suit, shirt and a tie that also bore the corporation's logo, he seemed very intimidating as he loomed over Jason from the other side of the bars.
Jason's eyes passed over from one face to another not knowing which one to trust. He shrunk back into the cell to distance himself.
"So. The sleeping child is finally awake," the businessman bellowed.
"My, my. It certainly has been a while hasn't it dear boy?" the professor said merrily glaring through the bars. He spoke with such a tone, almost as if he were speaking to Jason as a long lost friend.
"I'm glad to see that you're okay now. How do you feel?" Lieutenant Fielding asked.
"How do you think I feel? I've just be taken from the only thing I have left to call a family and a home by a bunch of muscle-brain morons and I find myself lying in a rotting jail cell. Yeah, I've had a great day! How was yours?" he replied sarcastically. The group chuckled all except for the businessman.
"So we meet again. Don't suppose you remember us do you?" the businessman asked gruffly. Jason strained his eyes to recognise the faces staring at him. The only one who seemed to jog something in his memory was the old man in the lab coat. Where had he heard the name "Xander Baxter" before?
"Didn't think he would," Captain Hunter said folding his arms.
"Hang on. Aren't you the ones I saw in the ruined labs back in 2113? The ones who opened fire on me as I tried to escape?"
"Heh heh. Got it in one!" Sergeant Stone laughed, "Nearly had ya too! Should just set Zephyr on you! Won't stand a chance once this hound gets running!" He patted his guard dog on the head as it sat obediently by his side. Lieutenant Fielding elbowed him sharply in the ribs making him flinch. Jason actually found this quite comical and sniggered behind a hand.
"I heard you put up quite an impressive resistance. Seems as though you've adapted fairly well to life out here," the businessman stated with a twisted, thin-lipped smile.
"Yeah, and? What's all that got to do with me being locked up in here like some serial killer?" Jason snapped back. He really didn't like the way the businessman spoke to him as if he were some sort of underling.
"We were very impressed that you managed to activate one of our failed projects back when we found you. The Chronos Doorway was a project that was unsuccessful due to an inability to generate sufficient energy to hold the door open long enough for somebody to physically pass through. You, on the other hand, managed to activate the doorway with some sort of energy that brought the machine to life. We owe you our thanks for our reopening of the Chronos Doorway project. We thought it would never get off the ground," Professor Baxter said gratefully.
"You're very welcome, but that's got nothing to do with why I'm here," Jason replied irritably, "maybe you can explain what all these holes and sore patches are on my skin."
"I'm sorry to report that we had to run a brief medical examination whilst the tranquilliser's chemicals were still effective. I assure you nothing has been done to you. After all, why would I possibly want to harm the son of one of my best colleagues? You've grown an awful lot since I last saw you as a lad," the old man said, peering down at Jason over his rectangular lenses.
"What! You…you knew my…" Jason asked now paying full attention. The professor just nodded.
"Yes. Your mother was one of our best employees in our energetics department. Professor Baxter here alongside your mother and various others helped to create revolutionary products that changed the world's views on how energy can be manipulated and used," the businessman said proudly.
"I thought I recognised your name. You're the man mum always used to talk about. You're the one who gave me that medical kit when I was a kid," Jason said flabbergasted. Memories of his early childhood flooded back when he used to sit in the labs with the professor and his mother whilst they worked.
"Your mother and I were working on a massive project. It was going to change the world," Professor Baxter continued with a smile.
"…The perpetual energy source…that's the last major project she worked on right?" Jason asked in awe. The professor nodded.
"But I thought she said the project was scrapped."
"It was, but we have reason to believe that perpetual energy is still available. We reopened the project about a year and a half ago and we came so close to completing it. We just need a few more mysteries to untangle before we can make a logical hypothesis on actually harnessing the free energy that is supposedly able to last forever." Jason's thoughts referred back to his mother and all she said about the project; all up to her dying day. Something emotional flushed over him and he slowly reached up to clasp his pendent.
"Hey! My pendent! Where's it gone?" Jason shouted in shock after finding it missing from around his neck.
"It's in the observatory labs. We had to take it off you in order to look over you properly. It caused quite a tremendous interference with our electrical equipment. Once we removed it from you, all the equipment worked fine. Metal objects have a tendency to cause resonance that affects their circuitry," Lieutenant Fielding said calmly as she saw the distressing look on Jason's face as he tried to find it in his cell.
"Give it back! I need that!"
"I'm afraid not. We've got things we need to discuss," the businessman said sternly, completely undisturbed by Jason's desperate search.
"Discuss? What's there to discuss? Let me outta here! I got to get back to Littlefoot and the others! They'll be worried sick about me! Lemme go!"
"Sorry kid. You're staying right were you are. We'll interrogate you tomorrow," Captain Hunter stated.
"What! No! You can't keep me here! Let me out!" Jason panicked, thrashing at the bars.
"SILENCE!" the businessman erupted, bashing the cage. Jason fell backwards and landed heavily on one side.
"You are to remain here. We will deal with you tomorrow." With a sweeping turn, the businessman pursed his thin lips in anger and stormed out. One by one, the rest of the people marched out of the jail, leaving Jason powerless on the grimy, concrete floor. The last to leave was the lieutenant who looked down on Jason sorrowfully. He looked back up at her for an understanding.
"Please! Help me! I have to get out of here! Littlefoot will be so worried; so will my grandparents. Please let me out! I've done nothing wrong!" Jason begged.
"I'm sorry Jason, I can't let you go. But the quicker you co-operate with what Mr. Westwood has got to ask, the sooner you can get out," she said slowly.
"You mean that guys with the oil slick haircut and the monkey suit? He'd spoke like I'm some sort of guinea pig. You can help but I have to get out now Miss.! Please!"
"Call me Jill," she insisted.
"Okay, Jill. Can't you reason with them? I have to get back to them."
"I'm sorry Jason. There's nothing I can do, but tell me something. Your friends, Littlefoot and the others. They speak don't they? How did you make contacts with them in the first place? How is it they talk?"
"I dunno. They're not just brainless wanderers as we seem to think. They are intelligent creatures that have true feelings and emotions. Now please. Can't you let me out? Please." Jill headed for the door, despite Jason's pleases to release him.
"I suggest you get some rest. You'll feel better after a night's sleep. I'll see you tomorrow." She said taking one last glance at him before shutting the door behind her.
Jason collapsed on the bed exhausted. So much had happened so quickly that his headache had returned. Despite his interaction with more members of the corporation, nothing seemed any clearer. Thoughts of Littlefoot and the others crept into his mind, making the pain more intense. He felt like a criminal locked up in an animal's cage with only a small, barred window in the wall to light the dark, dank, concrete room. The rays of light were slowly fading as night approached. The horizon glowed a warm orange as the sun gradually disappeared behind the Smoking Mountain. Jason sighed and buried his face in his hands.
"Oh Littlefoot. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I brought all this mess to you and the Valley. Please forgive me."
Chapter 32: A Guiding LightNightfall had descended on the Great Valley and its inhabitants were all still very much disturbed by the humans' invasion earlier on in the day. Everyone had broken up for the night but they were all on full alert in fear that the humans may plan something whilst they all slept. Parents tucked their children (some still unborn) closer to them for extra protection. As for the gang, Petrie's mother had instructed him and his siblings to all sleep at the back of their cave, Ducky and her brothers and sisters slept sandwiched between their mother and Spike. Cera and the threehorn twins had moved to a new nesting ground on orders from Mr. Threehorn who stood guard over them, Ali and her herd had initially thought to leave the Valley but Grandpa Longneck reassured them that despite the humans being present, their home was still safe, so, they decided to stay.
Littlefoot felt completely lost as he and his grandparents headed for home. Walking between the two of them, Littlefoot replayed the happenings of the day over and over in his mind. He remembered how Jason fought with the other human in black as he threatened to shoot him and how he argued with those three, important looking humans. Finally, he remembered how the humans put him to sleep before taking him away. He tried to stop them but that other human struck him across the face with his gun. Littlefoot felt his jaw ache slightly as the thought of being hit sprung to mind. Grandpa and Grandma Longneck looked down on Littlefoot as he walked with his head hanging low. They felt at a loss too but they could tell Littlefoot was feeling it a lot stronger than anyone else. Ever since that day Jason saved Littlefoot's life when he almost drowned, they had seen him as an adopted grandson and looking at Littlefoot now, they felt even worse but no words of comfort could come to mind.
Once they reached home, Grandma Longneck nudged Littlefoot into his sleeping pit. Littlefoot wanted to resist but he didn't want to seem rude. He settled down and sighed. He looked over at Jason's tree he would have slept in for the night, but the fact remained; Jason would not be there this time.
"Grandma. I can't sleep. It doesn't feel right without Jason here," he sighed again.
"I know it won't be the same without Jason here Littlefoot but there is nothing we can do," she replied calmingly.
"I'm afraid Grandma is right Littlefoot. We feel at a loss without Jason here too but those humans seem too ruthless to talk to. Perhaps Jason will return tomorrow morning once they have finished with whatever it is they have to discuss," Grandpa Longneck said softly.
"But they were so mean Grandpa. They hurt Jason and put him to sleep even though he didn't want to go with them. What kind of creature harms one of its own just because it doesn't want to do something?" Littlefoot protested. Grandma and Grandpa Longneck both fell silent. Littlefoot rolled over on to his back and stared up at the starry night sky.
"Jason told me so much about everything. He used to tell me about the stars and their stories. He shared so much with me and taught me more than I can remember …and now…he's gone…" he sighed.
"Now Littlefoot. You speak as if Jason is far, far away. Don't forget he is still here with us," Grandma Longneck quickly reminded him in a soothing voice.
"I know Grandma, but it's just that…I miss him already…"
"We understand Littlefoot. We miss him too but it would be better if we don't interfere with the affairs of the humans, just in case anything misfortunate should happen," Grandpa Longneck said. He gently rubbed Littlefoot as he rolled back over onto his front.
"You should try and get some rest. We'll worry about all this in the morning."
"Okay Grandpa. I'll try." With a final head rub from his grandparents, Littlefoot wished them goodnight before folding himself up to try and get to sleep. It was very hard for Littlefoot to try to sleep with his mind constantly whirring and buzzing with thoughts of Jason. Eventually, the thoughts subsided and Littlefoot managed to drift off.
Suddenly, Littlefoot woke up with a start. He stood up and looked around him. He was standing in the middle of a misty plain. The ground was rocky and hard, and the air was biting with a cold breeze. The mist circled around his ankles as he searched for something in endless fog. The sky was a dirty, clay brown as if he were standing in the centre of a whirlwind and the dust from the ground had carpeted the skyline. Littlefoot looked desperately for someone to tell him where he was but the bare and baron land didn't look hospitable for any means of life.
Then, from out of the mist, a figure appeared. Littlefoot jumped in shock as its thundering footsteps shook the earth from behind him. The mists swirled up and engulfed the figure, concealing its identity as it towered high over him. Littlefoot gazed up at the tremendous figure in awe. Its body composition looked like a longneck but with only the silhouette showing from the cloudy fog, Littlefoot couldn't make out anything distinguishable. Once the figure's form had finished, it spoke out to Littlefoot in a very uncharacteristically soft and loving, feminine tone.
"Hello Littlefoot." Littlefoot was stunned.
"H-hello?" he stammered.
"No need to be afraid. Speak up, tell me what's on your mind."
"W-who are you?"
"You already know the answer to that question my dear."
"What do you want?"
"I'm here to soothe your worries. Tell me what's troubling you."
"My…um…my friend was…taken from me today…by…"
"Humans. They came for your friend. He is a human as well is he not?"
"Ye…Yes! How did you know?"
"I've been watching. You care about him? Even though he is not one of your kind?"
"Huh? Well…yes, of course I do. He is my friend no matter what he looks like on the outside." The figure fell silent. It made a sound as if to snigger and offer a smile.
"What…what is it?" Littlefoot asked cautiously, unsure of how the figure was going to react.
"You Littlefoot. You have grown so much. Not just physically in size but mentally too. Not only that, another part of you has grown even more bigger than any other part of you," the figure said sweetly.
"What's that?" Littlefoot asked curiously. Strangely enough, the figure's voice was becoming more and more recognisable the more it spoke.
"Your heart. You care for such a creature that is so out of place. You befriended him and accepted him as one of your own; as an equal. With such passion and care in your heart, it makes me proud. Proud to be able to keep watching over you. Proud to call you my own."
"Wha…huh? What do you mean by that?" Littlefoot stuttered partly in confusion, but also in shock.
"I'm glad you are who you are Littlefoot. Don't ever change. And as for your friend, you know what you must to do. Follow that instinct and let it lead you to your friend."
"But how? Those humans are dangerous, they could harm me as well," Littlefoot protested. Just as he finished speaking, the winds picked up and began to blow strongly. The mist was swept up from behind him and it encircled the figure, making the silhouette fainter and fainter. The wind howled deafeningly as the figure faded.
"WAIT, DON'T GO! TELL ME HOW? WHAT SHOULD I DO? PLEASE TELL ME!" Littlefoot yelled above the roaring wind.
"Let your heart guide you Littlefoot. It will tell you which way to go. It whispers…so listen closely…" the figure said finally as the mist spiralled upwards and the silhouette disappeared. Littlefoot gasped in shock.
"Mother?!"
Everything began to spin, which forced Littlefoot to jump out of his sleep. He looked around from his place on the cool grass. He was back in the Great Valley with his grandparents asleep nearby. Everything had been a dream. Littlefoot sighed and looked up at the sky as he stood up. He shut his eyes and thought he heard something. That triggered something in his mind and he snapped his eyes open again in response. He had made his decision.
"I'm going to get Jason back! Tonight!" he whispered to himself determined. He glanced over at his grandparents who remained asleep.
"I'll bring him back Grandma and Grandpa. I promise." With that, Littlefoot took off for the Forest of Fear. As far as he was concerned, Jason was returning to him no matter what the cost.
Chapter 33: Tactical Espionage Dino ActionThe moonlit fields and pastures all looked ghostly and forsaken as Littlefoot tore across them at full speed. All the migrating herds that normally spent their days resting in these lush, green plains had taken to the shelter of the trees to hide themselves from possible human encounter. Silvery streaks of moonlight shimmered over rivers that he past as the nocturnal life chirped and echoed from every direction. Upon finally reaching the Grazing Pasture, Littlefoot slowed down to a walk to let his body recover from his run from home. Nothing seemed normal with all fields abandoned and the Forest of Fear that lay on the opposite side of the pasture looked even more eerie at night than it did during the day. Littlefoot halted on the forest's border. He had fully recovered from his little jog but something inside was buzzing with such excitement, which made his heart thump anxiously on his ribs. As he stood there gazing into the dark woods, Littlefoot kept reminding himself of his determination to save Jason and the dream he had just had a little while back. With a final, deep breath, Littlefoot stepped into the forest.
Littlefoot found himself struggling to find the right way through the skinny trees. It was very difficult to see a few feet in front of him in the dark which was generally bad enough during the day. It wasn't long before Littlefoot noticed a path of fallen trees that the humans had obviously cut down with their Laser Blades. He decided to follow the trail of destruction as he felt this would be his best chance of finding the base where they were keeping Jason. Sure enough, after a little while of following the fallen trees, Littlefoot found climbed through a small bush and found the base sitting in the middle of its man-made clearing. Littlefoot sat poised in hiding since the last thing he wanted to do was to draw attention to himself. The electric fence that surrounded the compound was very close by but Littlefoot couldn't hear the faint buzzing that he could the first time he and the others arrived here. He was about to move forwards when he saw something move. Shrinking back down into the shrub, Littlefoot saw a man sitting on a wooden box by the front entrance. He looked half asleep but Littlefoot didn't want to approach him.
Taking a wide circle around the back of the base, Littlefoot began calling Jason's name softly to get a response.
"Jason…? Jason? Where are you?" He suddenly froze still after hearing something shuffle from inside the base by a small window.
"Jason?" Littlefoot asked quietly.
"Huh? Li-Littlefoot?" a tired voice replied. Littlefoot came out of hiding and moved towards the small barred window.
"Jason, I'm here."
"My God! Littlefoot! What are you…!" Jason exclaimed.
"Shhhhh! Quiet!" Littlefoot hissed as he popped his head up into view. Jason pulled himself up to the windowsill and gazed at Littlefoot through the metal grill of the fence.
"Littlefoot! What are you doing here? Are you crazy!" Jason said shocked yet pleased to see him.
"I came to rescue you," Littlefoot said beaming.
"No Littlefoot! You've got to get out of here! If you're seen, you'll be killed!" Jason said urgently.
"No! I'm came here to get you Jason and I'm not leaving until you're out of there. You don't belong in there, you should be with us." Jason smiled at Littlefoot's noble words. He then flinched at a loud grunting noise from behind him.
"What's that?" Littlefoot asked. Jason turned and saw a guard sound asleep across the way from his cell in a chair. His feet were perched up on the table and he was snoring.
"It's a guard in here but he's in the land of nod, don't worry. Listen Littlefoot. You got to be careful. Security around here isn't massive but if you're discovered, you'll be in big trouble. You've got to sneak into the base. You don't have to worry about the electric fence since there was a power failure earlier and the fence has been disabled."
"But how do I get past it?"
"Hey! There's a hole around the back somewhere. I overheard one of the guards talking about it. Apparently some dinosaur slashed the wire netting so you could probably get through. From there, you'll have to find a way in."
"There is a human at the front. Should I try and get past him?"
"No. That's too risky. See if you can squeeze through one of these small windows. There should be others around the back end somewhere. If you can get in, you've got to look for a blue door not too far from where you get in, okay?"
"Alright," Littlefoot nodded just about to set off.
"Littlefoot," Jason called out to him as he took his first step.
"Yeah Jason?"
"…Be careful, okay?"
"I will. Just hang on until I get to you alright?" Littlefoot smiled warmly. Jason, having gotten used to that gesture, automatically smiled back. As Littlefoot disappeared from sight, Jason lowered himself down from the windowsill and sat on his bed. He silently thanked Littlefoot for coming for him but he wrung his hands nervously.
"Good luck Littlefoot."
Following Jason's advice, Littlefoot tiptoed around to the rear of the base. Just as he had described, the wire mesh had been slashed by what looked like a claw of a sharptooth. He carefully, pushed his way through the tight gap and looked around at the stone wall for an opening. Luckily, Littlefoot spied a small window a little further down from the hole in the fence. As quietly as he could, he crept up to the rectangular hole and peered in. The room was too dark to make anything out but there did not appear to be anything alive inside. At the far end of the room, light was seeping in from within the base. With a little leap, Littlefoot pulled himself up to the window. It was quite a struggle for him to squeeze his body through the window. His top half was in but his hips and tail were stuck outside. Littlefoot put his front feet on the window ledge and pushed as hard as he could. He could feel his hind legs giving a little as he heaved to free himself. With one last, almighty push, Littlefoot felt his hind legs slip through window but his forward momentum carried him a little further than he had liked. As his back half came through, Littlefoot was sent sprawling to the floor and crashed noisily into the wall.
Picking himself up from the ground, Littlefoot found himself with a new obstacle. Light was being emitted from around a strange, flat surface. It was different to the cold, stone wall but it had a strange, shiny object sticking out of it. Littlefoot then remember the story that Jason told him about the woman and the zombies. It was a door but how did Jason say it worked? He was sure it had something to do with the cold, shiny object but he couldn't remember what it did. Littlefoot began poking and prodding the object in as many ways as he could think of, but none of them opened it. Then, something jumped to mind. Littlefoot took the metal bar in his mouth and he pulled it downwards. With a click, the door opened inwards and revealed a maze of marbled corridors all leading in different directions. Cautiously, Littlefoot stepped out into the corridor. The ground was unnaturally cold and his footsteps clapped audibly on its smooth surface. Now, all he had to do was to look for the blue door which Jason was on the other side of.
Meanwhile, Jason began pacing up and down in his cell anxiously. Littlefoot had taken a lot longer than he had first anticipated. All sorts of conclusions sprung to mind. Perhaps Littlefoot had been captured and they where experimenting on him like a plaything or worse, they could have killed him on the spot. His nerves were raw as he kept looking at the heavy, blue door expecting Littlefoot to come through any second, but every time he looked up at the door, it didn't budge. Suddenly, there was a loud bang on the door. Jason jumped and whirred around. The handle creaked and lowered slowly. Jason quickly hopped back into his dirty bed and pretended to sleep with his head under the covers. He heard the door's rusty hinges groan as the door opened as a figure stepped into the room with a distinct footfall. Jason pulled the bed sheets from over his head and found himself face to face with a beaming Littlefoot.
"Littlefoot! You made it!" Jason cried silently.
"Jason, what is this place?" Littlefoot whispered looking in disgust at the jail cell Jason was locked up in.
"Don't worry about it. What matters is that I'm not going to be in here for much longer."
"How are you going to get out?"
"Littlefoot. You see that guy over there?" Jason asked pointing to the snoring guard.
"Yeah. Wow, he makes louder sleep-grumbles than Spike!" Littlefoot giggled.
"Tell me about it! Anyway, see those silvery things on the table. They're the keys for the cell. Pass me those and I can bust outta here!"
"Okay."
"Wait, be careful. Don't let them jingle or that guard will wake up. Make sure you grab them all together."
"Alright," Littlefoot acknowledged as he tiptoed over to the table. As he approached, the man grunted and shuffled. He froze as he moved but he merely fidgeted and remained asleep. Breathing a sigh of relieve, Littlefoot edged towards the keys on the table as Jason watched restlessly through the bars. Lowering his head down to the table, Littlefoot picked the keys up the small ring with his teeth trying hard not to make them rattle. Turning around slowly, he started back to Jason's cell. Unaware, Littlefoot's tail hit the leg of the table and the man in the chair grunted again. Instinctively, Littlefoot gasped in shock and opened his mouth, releasing the keys.
"Littlefoot!" Jason squealed as urgently, yet as quietly, as he could. In response, Littlefoot snatched at the keys as they fell and caught them in his mouth. Sighing relieved, Jason held out his hand as Littlefoot approached. Littlefoot then opened his mouth and spat the keys into his hand. Jason cringed slightly and Littlefoot yapped at the foul taste the metal had left in his mouth.
Flicking through the wet bunch of keys, Jason eventually found the right one and the cell door swung open. Closing the door behind him and placing keys back on the table, Jason turned to Littlefoot and hugged him around his neck. Littlefoot, a little shocked at first, hugged him back.
"Thank you Littlefoot. I knew you'd never let me rot in here. You really are a true friend."
"Friends forever remember?" Littlefoot said smiling.
"Yeah. Friends forever. Now come on, let's get outta here!"
Opening the large blue door, Jason looked left and right down the corridors for possible signs of life. With the coast clear, Jason and Littlefoot began walking silently down the corridors.
"What is this place Jason?" Littlefoot whispered as they past a number of medical laboratories.
"This is what Red Phoenix Labs are famous for. Medical break-throughs and enhancements in all fields of science. They are…" Jason broke off suddenly.
"What is it?" Littlefoot asked bumping into Jason as he stopped suddenly.
"Someone's coming! Quick! In here," Jason ordered as he shoved Littlefoot into a side room. In the dark room, Littlefoot and Jason listened as the clapping of footsteps approached and past them. Looking around, Jason saw another small window.
"Littlefoot. Up here," he signalled. With a quick glance to make sure all was clear, Jason pulled himself through the small gap and out of the complex. He, then, quickly waved to Littlefoot to come through. Littlefoot hopped up to the window and pulled himself through but suddenly felt his hind legs stop his from pulling himself through. He looked back to see himself wedged in the small space again.
"Uh oh! Jason! I'm stuck!" Littlefoot gasped as he wriggled his legs trying to squeeze through.
"Oh no! Here, take my hand. I'll pull you out," Jason said thrusting hand out to Littlefoot. Taking hold of his forelegs, Jason began to tug at Littlefoot as he tried to push himself out. Groaning and struggling, Jason dug his heels deeper into the ground for extra traction. Littlefoot felt his hips inching outwards. With one last tug, Littlefoot popped out from the hole, sending him and Jason crashing into the fence, which rattled noisily. Getting up quickly, Jason and Littlefoot hurried to the rear of the base where Littlefoot said the hole in the fence was. Upon reaching it, Jason crawled through and Littlefoot followed. Unfortunately for Littlefoot, he stood up a little too soon and the sharpened end of the metal wire scratched him down his back. Littlefoot yelped in pain but Jason threw his hand over his mouth before he yelled any louder. Littlefoot gave his head a shake to get Jason to remove his hand and nodded to tell him he was alright. Without another word, they both slipped into the forest, completely undetected.
After a short jog, following the fallen trees, Littlefoot and Jason found their way out of the Forest of Fear and started across the Grazing Pasture.
"Oh Littlefoot. You're a star! I can't believe you actually came for me!"
"I couldn't just give up on you like that Jason. You have helped us dinosaurs out so much and you're such a good friend, I had to come for you."
"Thanks Littlefoot. It's so good to know I can count on someone else for a change rather than having to watch my own back every second of the day. I'm so glad you came."
"It's no problem," Littlefoot replied but he suddenly hissed in pain.
"Oh your back! Are you okay?" Jason asked as Littlefoot fell to his knees.
"I scratched it on the sharp, shiny border thing," Littlefoot said as he looked at the bloody score down his back.
"Ooooo. That looks painful. When we get back home, I'll patch that wound up for you. C'mon, let's get back. I'm looking forward to sleeping in a decent bed besides that mouldy cloth back in that cell," Jason smiled and through his pain, Littlefoot smiled back.
Once they reached home, Littlefoot collapsed into his pit and Jason dove into his bag to retrieve his medical kit. Taking a small bottle and some cotton wool, he approached Littlefoot.
"Oh! Don't lick it Littlefoot! You'll make it worse!" Jason warned as he found Littlefoot trying to ease his own pain.
"It really hurts Jason," Littlefoot winced.
"I know. This will help keep it clean. I must warn you, this will sting a little but only for a second." Jason softly stroked the wound with the cotton wool making Littlefoot flinch awkwardly.
"Okay. All done. Just need to bandage it so it doesn't get infected," Jason said pulling a roll of bandages from his first aid box. After Jason wrapped up his wound, Littlefoot smiled at Jason.
"Thanks Jason. It feels a lot better now."
"Good. Just don't bite the bandages if they itch or they'll fall off," Jason replied as he put the medical kit back in his bag. As he zipped up his bag, Jason looked over at his dozing grandparents. He felt so happy to see them again.
"Man, it's so good to be back."
"It's good to have you back Jason. I'll sleep so much better knowing you're here too."
"Yeah, me too. I wonder how those jerks back at that complex are gonna react when they find out that their top secret base was infiltrated by a dinosaur in the dead of the night. That Mr. Westwood guy definitely won't be pleased," Jason sniggered as he clambered into his tree.
"Goodnight Littlefoot. See you in the morning," he yawned.
"Goodnight Jason," Littlefoot replied before yawning himself. Before long, both of them curled up and were fast asleep.
Chapter 34: A Short Lived ReunionThe first rays of the morning light pierced the darkness of the night as dawn approached. The flaming red sun began to peer over the Smoking Mountain and gave a radiant shine to the fertile fields of the Great Valley. Captain Hunter, Sergeant Stone and Lieutenant Fielding were discussing the mission plan and the upcoming interrogation with Jason.
"Right. At 0800 hours, we start asking the kid questions. He'll have to give us answers so we can report back to the professor and Westwood as soon as possible," Hunter stated.
"What if he's unco-operative?" Stone asked stroking Zephyr as he lay at his feet.
"We'll make him talk. I don't want to have to use force but Westwood said to use any means necessary without causing too much physical damage," Hunter said blandly.
"What's Westwood want with Jason so much anyway?" Fielding yawned.
"You okay Jill? You look terrible. Mind you what's new?" Stone sniggered.
"Shut it Daniel!" she retorted punching him in the side, "I didn't sleep too well last night. Had some sort of weird dream."
"What about?" Hunter asked curiously.
"I can't remember all of it. It had something to do with Jason and that other long-necked dinosaur kid that was with him; Littlefoot's his name I think. There was something strange about them. They each had a glowing light on them. Jason's was red and it shone over his chest and Littlefoot's was blue and it shimmered in his eyes like tears. It was…oh what does it matter…it's not important…"
"Are you sure you're feeling okay?" Stone asked concerned.
"It's no big deal. I go see the professor later. Shall I go get Jason now Captain?"
"Yes. We may as well start now." Jill gave a quick dismissive salute and walked to the jail cell. As she reached the prison door, she stopped to think about her dream. It didn't make any sense to her but she felt it could have possibly meant something. She then pulled off her right glove and looked at the small, emerald ring on her finger. During the dream, she could have sworn she felt a burning sensation coming from her ring. Shaking her head to rid herself of the thoughts, she opened the heavy, blue door to retrieve Jason.
Meanwhile, back in the operations room, Hunter and Stone were discussing their plans for examining the land for a possible extraction point for which they could possibly use for the Chronos Doorway so they could return home.
"What about this section Captain? We haven't looked here yet."
"Nah. Too much harmonic resonance a few yards before that area. Professor Baxter says that will be a waste of power to set it up there." Just as they started writing out plans, the businessman and the professor walked in.
"Good morning Xander, Dominic," Hunter nodded to each of them in turn.
"David," Westwood replied straightening his tie.
"How are the plans going Sergeant?" Professor Baxter asked looming over the virtual images of the Great Valley and its surrounding areas.
"Fine. We've established a…"
"Captain Hunter! We've got a problem!" Jill cried bursting into the room.
"What is it?" he replied.
"Jason's gone!"
"What! That's not possible!" Westwood barked.
"Either that or he's invisible, the cell's empty!"
"Initiate a search! Scan the entire complex! Get every man on him now!" Hunter shouted urgently. Both Jill and Sergeant Stone barged open the operations room door to raise the alarm. Forming their parties, the Red Phoenix Squadron searched high and low, looking in every crevice for Jason completely unaware that he was nowhere near their base.
Meanwhile, Jason and Littlefoot were just waking up. The early morning sun warmed them gently making them stir.
"Morning Littlefoot," Jason said with a big yawn.
"Good morning Jason. Sleep well?" Littlefoot replied sleepily.
"Oh yeah. Better than I would have in that scummy prison cell that's for sure," Jason said with a smile. Just as Littlefoot stretched and stood up and Jason slid down from his tree (his knees clicking rather audibly on impact with the ground), they turned to see Grandma and Grandpa Longneck starting to shuffle. They both snapped quick glances at each other wondering how they would react when they saw Jason standing in front of them. Before they got a chance to say anything, Grandpa Longneck opened his eyes.
"Oh! Jason?" he said in surprise making Littlefoot and Jason jump.
"Jason? Is that you?" Grandma Longneck asked softly.
"Yes Grandma, Grandpa. It's me." The two mighty brontosauruses stood up and gasped in shock.
"Oh Jason, you've returned safely!" Grandma Longneck said gratefully as she lowered her head to greet him. Jason hugged her nose in response so pleased to see them again.
"How did you escape the humans?" Grandpa Longneck asked intrigued after Jason gave him a hug also. Breaking away, Jason looked at Littlefoot who replied to it a similar blank gaze back. Picking up on this, Grandma and Grandpa Longneck both gave a piercing stare which Littlefoot knew all too well.
"Jason? Just how did you escape last night, if it was last night that is," Grandma Longneck asked probingly.
"Littlefoot? Did you have anything to do with this? And don't you con me," Grandpa Longneck said in a tone that was inviting yet dangerous. Jason and Littlefoot took one last look at each other and sighed before spelling out the whole thing. During in the speech, Grandma Longneck noticed the slightly bloody bandage that was stuck along Littlefoot's spine.
"Well, I'm not very impressed that you took such a dangerous risk Littlefoot. You could have been injured far worse than just that scratch on your back," Grandpa Longneck said scornfully.
"I know Grandpa, but I had to do something," he replied.
"But that is what we are glad about Littlefoot is that you actually did do something," Grandma Longneck said sweetly, "Jason. We are so glad to see you again. When Littlefoot said you had been captured we feared the worst."
"Believe me Grandma, it's great to be back. I couldn't have survived with them…not without you guys," Jason said pulling Littlefoot closer. They all smiled.
"Hey, how about a swim Jason? We could play for a while before we go to the fields," Littlefoot suggested tugging his head from out of Jason's headlock.
"Okay," Jason said grabbing his bag and throwing it on one shoulder, "I'll race you to the Thundering Falls."
"Okay, you're on!" Littlefoot said accepting his challenge.
"Ready…" Jason said eyeing him.
"…Set…" Littlefoot continued smirking.
"…GO!" Grandma and Grandpa Longneck yelled out of sync. Jason looked up in surprise but Littlefoot had taken off in an instant.
"Hey! Littlefoot! Wait up!" Jason called sprinting after him. Grandma and Grandpa Longneck laughed as they watched the two of them charge off into the distance.
*
"Captain, he's nowhere to be seen. The kid's disappeared we've searched every square-inch of the base and there's no sign of him," a private reported.
"Damn it! Where the hell is that kid?" Hunter cursed throwing his radio on the floor in anger.
"How could he just vanish like that?" Stone asked dumbfounded.
"Perhaps someone let him out?" a private standing in the room suggested.
"Who would let the kid out?" Hunter barked.
"The professor maybe? He knew the kid's mother," Stone said.
"No sir, the professor was tending to Charles, the guy who got tranquillised. Apparently the chemicals generated some sort of allergic reaction and now he's in the hospital wing," the private reported.
"So who then?" Stone continued. Just then, Jill walked into the room and all eyes fixed onto her.
"No sign Captain. We've looked…what? What're you all gawking at me for?"
"Lieutenant Fielding, did you release Jason last night?" Stone asked staring her straight in the eye.
"No! Get out of my face Daniel," she snapped batting the sergeant out of the way.
"You seemed pretty attached to the boy Jill. Are you sure you didn't do anything regrettable last night?" Hunter asked slowly.
"What? N-no! I was back in my dormitory. Why are you suddenly picking on me? I didn't let the kid out. Besides, the professor found Jason's prints on the cell keys so somehow he managed to get the keys himself."
"It's true," a voice said entering the room.
"Professor. What did you find out?" Hunter asked desperately.
"Jason's fingerprints are definitely on the keys. They match the prints I took from him when I first examined him. But…that's not all I found from the keys," Professor Baxter said stepping further into the room.
"What else did you find?" Jill asked.
"Some sort of dried, digestive fluid on them. The sample contained enzymes that specialise in the break down of cellulose and parenchyma tissue of a specific…
"What's all that techno-babble mean for those of us that don't speak scientifically?" Hunter said dumbly.
"What it means Captain is…I believe it is saliva but the DNA testing did not match anyone in this facility."
"Saliva? Who would dribble all over the keys?" Stone asked perplexed. He then glanced down at Zephyr who whimpered and lowered his head.
"Don't worry Sergeant. Your dog is on the records too and it's not him. To be honest, the DNA had the wrong number of chromosomes for a dog or a human. What it was, it was not of our world."
"What do you mean by that?" Hunter said blandly. Jill then gasped in shock.
"Littlefoot…" she said thunderstruck.
"That brontosaurus?" Stone blurted out stunned, "How the hell can a dinosaur get into the complex, snatch the kid and leg it off into the night?"
"I think that our young lieutenant maybe be correct. The DNA did not match any recorded species that existed in our time so that would be the only other explanation. Also, Jason did have a very close bond with that young dinosaur; definitely a quality of his mother having a bond like that. Perhaps such a strong bond that it drove his dinosaur friend to rescue him," the professor said analytically. Hunter bent down and picked up his radio and began calling for his men to get ready.
"Hunter? What are you doing?" Professor Baxter asked sternly.
"We've gotta get him back. Fielding, Stone. Suit up. We're going back out there!"
*
Jason and Littlefoot, in the meantime, had just reached the Thundering Falls. Jason, whilst still running, threw his bag to one side, ripped off his t-shirt, kicked off his trainers and leapt into the lukewarm pool. Littlefoot followed, jumping in with an almighty splash that threw water everywhere. Laughing and playing, Littlefoot and Jason splashed around under the waterfall. They had completely forgotten about the Red Phoenix Group and continued regardless. Once they had messed around for a while, Jason climbed out of the pool and wiped his face on his t-shirt. Littlefoot followed and shook the water off him getting Jason with the shrapnel.
"Oh Littlefoot. I forgot to take off your bandage. It's soaking wet," Jason said looking at the dirty, white bandage on Littlefoot's back. It was disintegrating.
"It's okay, it doesn't hurt anymore," he replied peeling it off. As he threw it to Jason, Littlefoot looked up at Jason as noticed something unusual about him.
"Hey Jason. You're missing something," he said.
"Huh? What?" Jason replied confused.
"You're red stone. Where's that gold vine you normally have around your neck?"
"Oh, my mother's pendent! I left it back in the base!" Jason exclaimed in shock, "I have to get it back!"
"What? You're not going back there are you?"
"I don't think I'm going to have to take myself there Littlefoot. My guess is that they've probably realised that I've escaped by now. They'll be searching for me right now."
"What are we gonna do? You're not going to go with them are you?"
"No way! There's nothing in the world that can make me go back there under my own free will." Jason pulled his t-shirt on and threw the bandage into the water.
"It's biodegradable. It will dissolve into the water harmlessly. Now come on, let's go give Cera, Ducky, Petrie, Spike and Ali a little shock shall we?" Jason said winking. Littlefoot giggled and followed him out of the clearing to find the rest of the gang.
It didn't take Littlefoot and Jason long to find their friends (after a quick detour home for Jason to put his bag back). They were all sitting in amongst the Tall Trees looking extremely glum and depressed. Wandering around with their head low were Dinah and Dana and just by looking at them, Jason and Littlefoot could tell they were not their normal, bouncy, hyperactive selves. Even Spike was sat in shade of the gigantic trees and refused to eat a single bite of the wavering bush that was tapping him from behind. Littlefoot and Jason looked at each other utterly surprised.
"Gosh…I've never seen them like this before…" Littlefoot whispered slowly.
"They look so downcast…it's painful just looking at them…" Jason replied solemnly.
"Oh! It's no use…we've hunted up and down for Littlefoot for more than an hour. Where could he be?" Cera whined kicking a loose stone so hard it made her toes throb.
"And poor, poor Jason. We have not heard anything about him at all. Do you think he is okay?" Ducky said sorrowfully.
"You think the humans grab Littlefoot and do nasty things to him like they do to Jason?" Petrie then asked nervously.
"I hope not, but we already searched the Forest of Fear and we still couldn't find Littlefoot," Ali said gravely, "he did say that he wanted to get Jason back but I couldn't see how he was going to do it."
"I can't believe we actually went into that weird and creepy forest in the first place but if it wasn't that Littlefoot may of went in there…I wouldn't have gone back there to look for him," Cera said angrily yet nobly. Jason looked at Littlefoot in shock.
"Wow! I've never really realised how much these guys care about each other. They even explored an area they knew was forbidden and under their own free will just to find Littlefoot," Jason thought. Littlefoot then noticed Jason was looking at him and turned to face him. Reacting to his glance, Jason whipped around trying to pretend he was still focusing on everyone sitting in the peaceful, little glade. Unable to keep his view fixed on the gang, Jason saw Littlefoot still looking at him out of the corner of his eye. Turning to him, Littlefoot smiled and Jason smiled back.
"Think we should lighten their spirits a bit? It sounds like they are really worried about you," Jason said.
"Yeah, okay. I'm sure they were worried about you too Jason. Don't forget that you are part of our group too," Littlefoot said merrily. Jason's eyes lit up and his smile broadened as Littlefoot's words processed in his head. After a few seconds to get over his friendly speech, Jason nodded as he watched Littlefoot's smile widen as well.
"Shall we?" Jason then said flicking his head in the direction of the rest of the gang.
"Yeah, let's," Littlefoot replied as they pushed their way through their bushy hiding places to rejoin the others.
Listening to the rustling that was approaching them, the gang all looked up one by one and their faces all showed expressions of sheer shock and then of great joy.
"Dinee lookie! Is-a…!" Dana chirped happily.
"Yay Danee! Is-a Two-Legs!" Dinah confirmed bouncing up and down.
"Jason! You back!" Petrie cawed in shock as he flew over and perched on his shoulder.
"Yep, sure am Petrie," Jason said plainly but with a wide smile, "how's it going guys? Nice to see you all again." The area was still utterly gob-smacked apart from the threehorn twins who charged at him in excitement. Jason patted them each on the head to greet them as everyone else circled him and Littlefoot as if they were heavenly figures.
"Jason? How did you escape those humans?" Ali asked breaking the silence.
"Littlefoot busted me out. He infiltrated the Red Phoenix complex and got me out, completely undetected."
"You went in there all by yourself Littlefoot?" Ducky exclaimed.
"Uh-huh," Littlefoot said dismissively as if it were no trouble at all. The gang wooed in amazement.
"But wait a second, won't the humans come looking for you once they find out you're missing?" Ali then said concerned.
"Yeah, probably," Jason said shrugging, "but we can worry about that later." The small, clearing fell quiet again but this didn't faze Jason as he clapped loudly as if to break the haunting spell of silence hovering over them.
"Anyway, that's not what we're here for. The game's Manhunt and I'm up so get hiding!" Jason announced. Everyone scattered to distance themselves as Jason began to count. Whilst he counted, Jason felt a warm feeling inside as he found himself back with his friends but he still knew that he would be recaptured eventually. Despite knowing imprisonment would be inevitable, he let the thought slip him as he shouted,
"Ready or not! Here I come!"