For a moment, Tristan could only stare on, stunned, as the beetles converged on him, their former animosity forgotten as they attempted to run down the human.
At least, it appeared this way. When one beetle got too close to another, the second attacked the first, and more joined both beetles, until, for the most part, the beetles were back to fighting each other. Some, however, continued to advance on the human, poised to strike, though why remained a mystery. Fear no longer controlled Tristan, however, and he quickly retreated back to his ATV, beetle still in his hands.
Given the far greater length of his strides, it did not take him long to get back to the ATV, secure the beetle in a pet carrier, and get ready to leave. However, the beetle's numbers had increased, and they had taken the opportunity to surround him, leaving Tristan with nowhere to go...for a moment. Soon, however, the beetles found themselves caught in a trap of their own - the female Diplodocus and Big Al had finally caught up to the human, and had veered particularly close to the carcass, owing to the sheer number of animals now traveling with them. Faced with an inability to maneuver, they had been forced to the outskirts of the herd, putting them on a collision course with the beetles. Additionally, more animals had joined the convoy of flesh and its pursuers, among them a Ceratosaurus and a male Stegosaurus. They too had been forced to the edge of the caravan, and now the bugs were in their way. Seeing no easy victory, the majority of the beetles either retreated or ended up being stepped on. A few instead charged the ATV, but instead of attacking, tried to crowd themselves into the large beetle's carrier. Confused, but sensing an opportunity, Tristan opened the container and shoved the beetles inside, before sealing it once more.
Immediate danger removed, Tristan rejoined the marching herd, moving further inside in order to seek safety from the predators. Before he was completely inside the caravan, though, he took out a piece of meat and threw it to Big Al, who greedily devoured the meat.
Smiling at the allosaur's happiness, Tristan continued on his way. He was soon surprised, though, when the familiar noise of an automobile engine began to float to his ears. Turning toward the sound, he saw a herd of Stegosaurus... and among them, Bob's jeep. With Bob inside of it.
The two humans looked at each other and waved, before continuing forward, unable to stop to meet lest they get crushed by the giant herbivores.
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Back at the park, Ted was in the Websteroprion exhibit, trying to determine why the worms had been so aggressive. This time, he was better prepared for the swim, having made sure to clad himself in a thick wetsuit designed normally for military usage. He hoped that he could figure out what had angered them soon, though, as the added protection was also starting to make him overheat.
Cautiously, he approached the mushrooms at the heart of the worms' exhibit, trying to figure out why they were acting so aggressive. Perhaps they were simply not being fed enough? Or maybe they didn't want their mushrooms disturbed? But why?
As he drew closer to the caps, though, Ted noticed something odd - none of the worms had attacked him. Normally, people were attacked before they could even get within ten meters of the outermost of the caps, yet he was now only ten feet from one of them. What had caused them to become more docile?
A new thought dawned on Ted. Though unsure if he was correct, he decided to give his hypothesis a test. Taking out a spear normally meant for feeding aggressive animals, he began to run it across the substrate, watching for a reaction. Surprisingly, there was none. No worms attacked him, and he did not draw up any of them.
Well, that explained why they weren't attacking - they weren't even here. So where had they gone.
Ted had an answer for that. If he was right, though, then he had a feeling Unknown Worlds would go absolutely bananas.
Cautiously, he began to ascend, attention focused on the mushroom caps. As he went upwards, all he saw was the rather normal appearance of a mushroom. When he was finally at an angle where he could look down on the cap, though, he saw something else - an aperture on the top of the fungus. Deciding to put his new theory to the test, he took out a fish, attached it to the spear, and held the spear out in front of him.
Mere moments later, one of the worms shot out of opening at the top of the mushroom and snatched the fish off the spear, tearing the creature in two. It retreated with the larger half of the corpse, while the smaller portion floated down to the bottom of the exhibit.
Ted smiled - it seemed that his hunch had been correct. The worms were protective over the mushrooms because they were the worms' home. As he looked down, he also noticed that the remains of the worms' prior meals were strewn about, mostly around the base of the mushroom stalks. All of them, barring the part of the fish he had just fed the worm, were covered in rootlike growths - mycelium.
As Ted returned to the edge of the exhibit, he wondered whether the worms would make good friends with crabsnakes.
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Back in the past, Tristan took a moment to fan himself as the herd of giants began to continue on its migration. It had been quite a while, but now they had reached the salt plains the group had seen earlier, or at least the entrance to them.
As the herd had converged on the salt flat, many other dinosaurs had joined them, among them a herd of Barosaurus. To his surprise, the rest of the team had been following these herbivores, and many hugs and back pats had been shared after they had reunited. Now, though, the team was focused on a new objective: rescue all of the dinosaurs and other creatures that were part of this caravan of flesh. As far as they could tell, literally ever dinosaur species in the Morrison Formation (and every other creature that could walk/fly and wasn't tethered to the water in some way) was part of this herd, with many of the members likely to die before they reached their destination. Needless to say, the team was unwilling to let that happen.
After securing all of the smaller rescues, among them not only the beetles, but also several fish, lizards, spheneodonts, insects, and amphibians, the team quickly drew up a plan - Nigel would set up the portal in front of them, while the rest of the team tried to herd the herbivores toward said portal. Measures had been taken to ensure that the staff were ready for the large number of animals coming through the portal (the groups was pretty sure at least a thousand were in the herd, and that was rounding down), but that still presented a problem with actually getting them into the present.
Fortunately, though, it seemed that the predators were making this just a little easier - the larger carnivores had all begun to move to the edges of the herd, readying themselves to strike. The smaller ones were already in the midst of the herbivores, intent on trying to pick out the smaller animals that were using the behemoths as shelter. Tristan watched as a small, fuzzy predator dashed past him, trying to snatch up a dryosaur. The crest on its nose identified it as Ornitholestes, though this crest was clearly made of flesh, not bone. Odd how science had been accidentally correct for some time when they had assumed the broken nose bones were a crest.
Still, now was not the time to lose focus. Now, he had a mission to complete.
Eventually, the predators got tired of watching and began to charge. The plan here wasn't to injure, but to scatter - if the herd stampeded now, they would likely leave a few stragglers, which the carnivores could easily tear into. Strength in numbers benefited the many at the expense of the few.
That was why the team had to act now.
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Approximately two miles ahead of the front of the herd, Nigel and Violet were busy setting up the portal. Hastily, they began burying the portal sticks inside the ground, watching as the herd of giant animals thundered toward them. Even the largest of the herbivores moved surprisingly fast, and it wouldn't be long before they reached the portal.
And if that wasn't up when they got there, the team would miss their chance.
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Bob swerved to the left as a predator lunged at him. The creature resembled Ceratosaurus, but was noticeably smaller than the other specimens Bob had seen in the area - meaning it was likely a Fosterovenator. The yellow and black theropod hissed as it missed its meal, before stumbling forward as Mymoorapelta ran past it, grazing its left foot. Injured by still standing, the predator broke off from the herd of herbivores, deciding to head caution and wait for another opportunity to appear. Meanwhile, the herd trudged onwards, desperately trying to escape the carnivores. All around him, Camptosaurus stampeded forward, pushed on by the massive dinosaurs behind them. Several collied with Bob, shoving his jeep left and right as the tried to dodge hungry predators
Some pioneering dinosaurs found ways to exploit the chaos. Among others, a trio of vibrant green Drinker had hitched a ride on the jeep, using the seats as wrest stops to keep themselves from tiring.
Bob could only sigh - this was not how he expected things to go today!
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Alice let out a rather girlish scream as Michelle slammed the jeep to the left, causing the Torvosaurus to groan as it fell into the salt. The quartet that had harassed the group earlier had returned, now joined by more of their kind, and they were determined to catch the prey that had eluded them earlier. The injured one suffered the indignity of having several Tanycolagreus use its body as a stepping stone before it managed to right itself. Lucas snapped a picture of the scene before returning his attention to the main chase - now this was good photo material!
Vera and Marcus, meanwhile, had other issues to attend to - namely, emptying their stomachs. The two had taken to spilling out said contents through the windows of the jeep, unintentionally deterring the megalosaurs from attacking - even they balked at getting themselves covered in the contents of another animal's stomach cavity.
Idly, Michelle wondered how Elise, Sean, Aiden and Aileen were holding up.
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Sean slammed on the breaks as a Hesperosaurus suddenly charged in front of him, trying to escape an attack from an Epanterias. The carnivore snarled as it missed its mark, before jerking its head back in shock as the truck sped past it, almost colliding with the carnosaur. Nearby, others of its kind harassed an old Galeamopus, trying to force it to separate from the herd. Attempting to kill it now ran the risk of losing the carcass to the stampede.
The trio of allosaurs were forced to abandon their target as a quintet of Dysoclosaurus battled past them - a bachelor herd that had been caught up in all of the confusion. Annoyed, the large carnivores hissed as they retreated, already looking for a new opportunity to isolate the leaf eater.
As the chaos around them increased, Elise wondered how things were going on the other side of the portal.
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"Everyone ready?" Asked Suzanne.
"YES!"
The head vet smiled. It looked like things might work out.
The minute Nigel has told them what he was going to do, the staff had mobilized. Over fifty automobiles had been moved down to what would become known as 'Jurassic Heights.' Additionally, the park had moved in five helicopters to provide air support, and even pulled out some ATVs and motorcycles. The majority of the unoccupied staff had been recalled for this mission, in order to deal with the massive number of residents inbound for the park. With no way to contain all of the residents in a holding pen, they'd have to separate them as they came through the portal.
Even with the hour notice Nigel had given her, this plan was still a long shot. Hopefully, it succeeded.
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Al charged though the chaos, fighting the aching pain in his foot as he darted between herbivores and carnivores, all while trying to avoid being crushed by the nearby sauropods.
All around him, creatures stampeded, trying to escape the madness that surrounded them. Predator harassed prey, while small creatures just tied to avoid being trampled. Some animals took to the situation better than others. Among them, a Comodactylus was resting on his back, exhausted from the heat. Meanwhile, the female Diplodocus he had seen earlier trudged on, fighting hard to avoid falling behind.
Up ahead, Al watched as the human who had helped him earlier rode his strange mount, swerving left and right to avoid hitting the smaller creatures around him. The particular amount of caution it showed was odd, by Al didn't care. Compassion was of no concern to him.
Then a dark grey and black shape started charging toward the human. Instantly, Al's pupils contracted. There was no mistaking it - the dark colored creature was on of his greatest rivals, Saurophaganax. The supermassive allosaur was among the region's greatest predators, only challenged by the likes of Torvosaurus. This new allosaur was pushing Epanterias to point of extinction, and whenever Al met one, he was forced to play second fiddle.
Well, not today.
Al rammed into the larger carnivore, hitting it with enough force to actually lift the large carnivore into the air a few feet, before sending it hurtling to the ground. For added insult, a Stegosaurus and Ceratosaurus literally walked right over the predator, breaking three of its ribs. Despite these injuries, the carnivore managed to right itself and continued on with its pursuit.
As the human turned to stare at him, Al merely bellowed in acknowledgement. A kindness had been repayed, and now the Allosaurus would be on his way.
The movement caught his attention. When he focused on it, Al grimaced.
It seemed the lashers had arrived.
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Tristan could only stare at Big Al, stunned that the predator had saved him. Why? Could dinosaurs really understand the concept of debt and repayment? Had Al been helping him to pay back feeding the predator?
A sudden screech snapped Tristan out of his pondering. A pair of Stokesosaurus surged forward, trying to avoid getting eaten by another Allosaurus, this one a vibrant orange female with black spots on her back. Briefly, she hissed as a Stegosaurus and Ceratosaurus Shot last her, denying her her chosen meal.
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About a half mile ahead of Tristan, the portal flickered to life, and just in time - about half a minute after Nigel and his two youngest recruits had charged through it, the first dinosaurs began to stampede inside.
More soon followed. On the other side of the portal, Pamela gestured for her driver to slow down slightly as they approached a group of Uatchitodon. With incredible deftness, she used a net to swipe up the quartet of Coelurus that used the herbivores for cover. Nearby, more staff worked to gather other small creatures before they could be injured by their larger brethren. Beneath a tree, Nigel, Tai and Biolet were busy trying to catch a group of bright red troodontids - Koparion, if she remembered right.
All the while, more dinosaur piled through the portal. Just how many were there?!
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As Tristan neared the portal, he smiled. It looked like they were going to make it.
Against all odds, it appeared that all of the animals were going to make it inside. While perhaps they might run into trouble at the park, they would still manage to make it to the safety of the present, if only for a scant few moments.
For once, Finagle chose not to act.
Just before Tristan thundered through the portal, he noticed some odd looking Ornitholestes following him. Then the bright light hit him, and the world changed.
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Behind Tristan, the last remains creatures charged into the portal, desperate to escape the onslaught/catch a meal. Ironically, though, it was not a predator that was destined to be final creature inside, but instead an armored Gargoyleosaurus, who had been ignored during the chase by all of the carnivores trying to get good meals. Despite this, it reduced onwards, hoping to escape animals that had already vanished.
As it ran through the portal, though, it unintentionally collided with the left most of the portal sticks, causing the device to spark. As it vanished into the present, the portal began to shudder, before finally collapsing, vanishing from existence.
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As Tristan came to a halt, he found Big Al nearby, resting under a tree. Already, Suzanne was looking him over, trying to feed him some antibiotic-filled meat.
Tristan felt as if a great burden had been lifted off his shoulders. It looked like all was going to make it.
Then a hiss caused Tristan to turn around. There, at the source of the sound, was a group of Ornitholestes...carrying spears and whips?!?!
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Listener stared at the biped, confused. Beside her, Stego, her mate, had sat on his rump, equally as perplexed as she was.
The Ornith clan had been following the diplo her for some time, trying to find an opportunity to take one done. A juvenile, even a scrawny one, could feed the clan for at least a week. The strategy was simple - use whips to isolate the young from their elders, then tear into them once they were vulnerable. Of the juveniles were far enough away from rest of their kind, they would be defenseless.
Now, though, things had gone completely awry. First the herd had been joined by other leaf eaters, making simply getting close to them a challenge. Then the migration path had led them to the salt plains earlier than expected. That had forced the clan to act even without being ready - there was too much at stake here. Lose them now and the clan would have to subsist on far more meager spoils. Difficult, but not impossible.
Then the herd had stampeded through the golden light, and the clan had followed. Now, they were in a new land, completely alien to them.
Unsure what to do, the Orniths had clustered together, watching on in confusion as the bipeds they had seen earlier now attempted to herd both predator and prey in this new wilderness. In frustration, Listener had hissed at one of the bipeds, unsure what kind of reaction that would provoke.
She was, consequently, very surprised when the biped, assisted by more of its kind, dropped the carcass of a large horned mammal in front of her. For a moment, Listener sniffer it, then began to dig in, as did the rest of her pack.
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Tristan watched on, dumbfounded, as the theropods discarded their arms and began fearing on the bison. Seriously, intelligent dinosaurs? What the hell was going on?
...Well, now he knew Dinosapiens had existed, so that was a plus.
A familiar whirring sound turned Tristan's attention back to the portal sticks. For a moment, all looked calm. Then, suddenly, a portal opened up, this one with many glasss shard like...things... orbiting it. A moment later, a blackshirt flew out of thenportal and onto the teen's face. Pulling it off, Tristan found it was a Jurassic World shirt.
Okay, which store had the time portal opened up to-
A strange hooting noise stopped Tristan's train of thought. Slowly, he lowered the shirt.
Their, standing in front of him, was a Dilophosaurs.
One with a slowly extending neck frill made of skin...
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AN: God, this took forever!
Yeah, a lot of swerves in this chapter, hope you guys are okay with it!
Read and Review! This is Foameal15k, signing off!
