Chapter 3 Razor

Cassian III Day 128 16:01 ( Footpaw Lat 78.5 Lon: 27.1 )

Where was he? His head pounded as he fumbled for an explanation. His arm rubbed against the muddy ground grasping for anything to sit up against. He only came across a steep mud wall about three times his height. Leaning against the mud wall, examined the pit and found that the other side faced what appeared to him to be a cliff. In the far distance was the structure. Still to his frustration he could not remember where he was. Silently he chastised himself. He promised himself he'd die a man and not some confused child. Not like Liam.

A sound summoned his attention. The same sound he recalled in his memories. It took a while for Cassian to piece together what it was. But once he realized what it was, he quickly rushed to his feet. It was a raptor. He searched for his spear, though it could not be found. Shit. The noise was still audible. Cassian knew it was several feet ahead of him. And so he took a glance and found the raptor injured. Covered in wounds the creature whimpered in pain until it saw Cassian. A wave of pure ferocity overcame it as it lashed out toward him. Cassian backed up in fear. And then chastised himself for that too.

…

Hours later, Cassian attempted to search for an escape. He searched the walls and attempted to find a ledge as a way to reduce the odds against him. Yet there was none. There was a boulder that jutted out about thirty feet away from the edge. He peered out the cliff. Below him was water. He sighed in relief, only for it to disappear immediately as a massive creature emerged out of the water. Its tail was spiked at the end, and it had enormous jaws. But its most notable feature was its spine. It had a bright orange sail running on its green back. In its jaws was the corpse of a dead manta. The creature roared as it shook the corpse side to side as chunks of its body fell into the water below. The massive beast then noticed him. Its red eyes poked a hole in his soul as it flared at him.

Cassian crossed out that option from his list. He sat down, his back touching the wall. He thought of everything he had saw. The horrors, and the entirety of it all. He thought of his name. The more he said it, the more it sounded foreign. Who gave him that name? Who was his mother? What was she like? He thought of the group. Rosa and her red hair. Kane and Liam. Guilt filled his gut before but now it had punctured it. He shook his head, shaking away the fear. The fear that he was lost. The fear that he knew nothing. The fear that he was not in control.

Sebastian I Day 128 16:46 ( Southern Jungle Lat 75.3 Lon 21.3)

He watched the new foreigners' faces as they gasped at the sight of the village. They were walking across a wooden bridge that connected the tiny micro islands inside the lake, and he could see the amazement on their faces. And it brought him joy. Like a mother showing her newborn, Sebastian presented each structure with his chest pointed outwards.

" My lord, l-look at the buildings a-and everything Rose." said the tall man. Kane Sebastian reminded himself. This one was cheerful and optimistic—totally the opposite of the other man. Rosa however remained neutral, as if her mind was on something else entirely.

" It's perfect." She replied with a monotonous voice.

Sebastian placed his hand on her shoulder. " We'll get that wound treated in no time my friend."

" You carried no sort of medicine in your stroll through those woods….why?"

" We had some, at least Larry did." He stopped and looked at her with sad eyes. " Larry um, he's-"

"- The one who got killed when shit went arseways, I know."

They crossed the paved roadways by walking. They made their way toward a few little thatch cottages and big hide tents. And they saw its occupants firsthand. All the people were busy playing, making music out of drums, or fishing in the massive lake. They even had a lookout to keep watch of Sarcos. Of course of the 2 years he's been on the Island none had shown up. Sebastian smiled and disappeared as he realized the events that had unfolded early in the day. They had fled the black Carnotaurus but in turn three of his people including Jezebel and one of the foreigners. This mission was clearly a failure. He didn't know how to tell them that. If he wanted to tell them that, they would figure it out.

" Well, well you got me all chuffed, sir Sebastian." A tall fair-skinned man with grey hair strolled up to the group.

" Nicholas." Sebastian smiled and brought the man in for a hug. The other men greeted him as well. Only Rosa and Kane stared at him anticipating his reaction to them.

" And you got some friends along as well. Name's Nicholas, call me Nick." He reached out his hands for both to shake. And they did.

" Kane."

" Rosa."

He turned and guided their eyes to behold the village. The huts and people walking around them aching to peek at the newcomers.

" Beautiful sight, innit? A good-sized community. Protection. Well after you have been through, I suppose even the sight of Sebastian would be the most splendid thing in the world."

" Careful now friend. Careful now." Sebastian chuckled. " Nick, why don't you take Rosa to our infirmary? Get her leg treated. As for Kane, point him to the temporary homes. There he can get settled."

Nick mocked a salute. " Will do, sir. And what about you?"

Sebastian's smile dissipated. " I'll gather up the leaders. I have a meeting to attend."

Jezebel I Day 128 17:02 ( Writhing Swamps)

" There's a green drop. We can't go through the swamp. A whole can of hell awaits us there. Some of my earlier companions found that out with their lives." Jezebel sat perched on one of the river stones sharpening an arrow for the bow she made.

" Watch out for that Dilophosaur-"

Jezebel instantly grabbed her bow and without hesitation aimed it at the creature and fired. The arrow pierced through its narrow head killing it instantly.

Liam swallowed the last remaining cooked dodo leg." How long were you here?"

" I came on day 64. Sebastian, my current leader, came on day 8. The closest anyone has been to the beginning of this Island. And you?"

Liam checked his implant. " We came on day 127."

Yesterday, Jezebel thought. " And you arrived with the others. Cassian, Rosa, and the tall one."

" Kane."

" Right, when we found them. They said they lost someone. I assume it's you." She watched his face darken for only a moment.

" We were separated." Jezebel could see it, however, he was hiding something. Perhaps it wasn't important. They've only been on this Island for one full day after all.

" I escaped to this Island a month ago. There's a part where the water is too shallow for the Sarcos to swim near."

" I'm sorry Sarcos, w- what… what are they?"

" Giant man-eating crocodiles. Don't worry about it, you'll know when you see one." Jezebel remembered her first. She remembered her terror and awe at the first of the beast. It didn't attack no, nor did it attack her previous tribe. It simply sat basking in's obsidian black scales in the sun yet shadowing the beach with its presence. Jezebel knew what crocodiles looked like. She could picture them in her head, the exact size. Yet she couldn't remember them being as large as that Sarcosuchus.

" They're easy to avoid if you're on the land of course." She could see the concern on Liam's face. Turning back to the landscape she pointed at a section of the water that was covered in green algae. On the other side, the land was covered with the same flora along with strange black plants known as briar bushes. On their left lay the swamp. A green hell composed of dilos, Paracerathiums, sarcos, and giant snails? The strange biome had leaping frogs and wild fauna. All boggled the mind of her travel companion.

She gripped her spear and walked across the warm water. In no time she was halfway to the other side.

" You sure nothing will attack us?" Liam stood across the shore.

" The mega piranhas don't swim here, I told you already this place is safe."

Still, her words meant nothing to Liam as he feared to take a step forward. She didn't care about his safety, or at least for the timing. She'll need him to retrieve the green drop. An hour later and it would vanish along with her chance of proving her worth to Sebastian. She gritted her teeth, " Liam! Don't you dare cower on me now after I saved your ass?"

" Killing someone isn't saving." Liam scoffed

Jezebel felt her face turn red as she finally digested his words. " You're alive dammit, why does it matter?"

" We may not be at home, but we're still humans. And as long as we remain humane we'll-"

"- Are you hearing yourself? As long as we remain humane, where did you hear that none sense?" Jezebel walked towards him. " Answer me!" Liam didn't answer. " ANSWER ME!"

" It's just a gut feeling. Listen, I know we're lost okay? The rest of humanity ok, it could be gone. But when we woke up on this Island that lady in our dreams. She spoke about us as if we meant something. Like we had a purpose. Like we were needed-"

"-Liam, that woman sent us to hell. My friends, my former tribe, they all died horribly, Liam. There is no purpose. There was no need, and yet every night I can still hear their screams as they were torn apart."

Liam paused, and Jezebel watched his face contort. He was hiding something.

" I died." He finally spoke.

" What?'

" I died, that's why I got separated from the group. I was killed by a Baryonyx."

The words stabbed at Jezebel. Trying to catch her breath she attempted to process the words. She tried to make them sense. For what reason? She couldn't possibly believe this nonsense. She knew death was the end. If not it meant that all her friends were… no.. no… It felt like a core part of her was ripped away. Everything she believed.

She stopped as tears formed in her eyes. Now she knew why she chose this mission. It was not to prove herself to Sebastian. She didn't care about that. Some part of her believed that just as Liam had been separated, her previous friends were somewhere else, alive. Someone had to escape.

Someone-. She felt a sharp prick in her leg as fell into the water. She attempted to stand up, but whatever was dragging her proved extremely strong.

" Jezebel! Get out of the w

a

t

e

r."

No. Her vision became blurry as she grasped the water for her spear. She must have dropped it from shock. Her lungs burned. She needed to resurface. Finally, she found the spear. But then she thought of Liam's words. And for some inexplicable reason, she let go. She felt cold water embrace her face. She was falling. Falling into….

Rosa I Day 128 17:02 ( Southern Jungle )

Rosa couldn't recall seeing so many faces before. Honestly, she didn't know how to feel about living with so many people. Part of her felt relieved to be surrounded by so many people. Yet another part of her felt uneasy with all the attention.

Nick had led her to a white-painted stone hut on one of the small lake islands. There she was met with several men and women. All dressed in leather painted white. They must be the medics. They laid her on a leather chair, while one of the healers inspected her leg. Two of the medics male and female argued about the supply of medicine. After deeming it not infected, they decided to feed her medical brew, though they were met with Rosa's hesitance in consuming the strange fluid. Eventually, she surrendered and gave in to consume the drink. Immediately she felt a burning sensation in her throat as her skin felt cold.

" Tastes strange huh?"

When she glanced up, one of the medics was beaming at her. Unlike the other doctors, she donned grey leather. She boasted dark skin and grey eyes.

" I remember the first time I drank one. The medics, man, the shit they had to go through in holding me down." She chuckled.

Rosa followed as well, although uncomfortably.

" The names Ruth." She extended her hand. Yet Rosa did not shake her hand.

" Rosa." She just said. " What was all that commotion about earlier?"

" As you might've heard we're… just facing issues on supplies, no big deal."

" The healing brew?"

" Yes."

Rosa chewed on the response. Though she felt like a foreigner she thought of solutions to the predicament.

" Have you ordered a group to gather berries?"

"We have done that, yeah. However, these medicines are costly in resources. And as days passed we had to search for bushes that contained the berries. And the creatures, particularly the Triceratops, devour them in large quantities. Only the narco berries and stimulant ones are left alone."

" That's a heap of bs, ya know that right? There's green everywhere. And the berries we've picked weren't too far from you guys, only a mile and a half away."

" Yes…" Ruth paused as she turned her head away from Rosa. A sunbeam captured a bit of her dark face. She looked troubled. " There is a festival tonight. It's for newcomers. And we'll need a lot of….of.. booze." She finally faced Rosa and released a sigh. Was she tired, disappointed, or annoyed? Rosa attempted to decipher her expressions. The woman frowned.

" Our leaders want us to forget. So what better way than a party?"

Rosa shook her head in disgust. If they knew what she had been through, the last thing she wanted was a party. Yet she was too exhausted to debate it. In fact, she was too exhausted to think at all. The narcotics were taking effect. Ruth led her to a bed.

Cassian Day 2 17:08 ( Footpaw Lat )

Cassian cracked the necks of the two Dilophosaurus that had fallen over the cliff. He grabbed his spear and dipped it in whatever Narcoberry stash he had left. Next came the more challenging part. He ventured over to the Raptor which remained alert of his presence. The creature sneered at him as it sensed him getting closer.

" Easy, now, easy now." Cassian took another step around its tail. He intended to hit it in the gut. However, when he realized that there was no way to locate such an apparatus, he abandoned his attempts and devised a superior strategy. He had an idea after looking at the dilophosaurus carcass. He snatched the last of the berries and shoved them deep inside the dilophosaur's gut.

And then he went with plan B. He grabbed the corpse and quietly stalked toward the raptor. Perhaps walking quietly would do the trick. Every animal had its own rules. No sudden movements were one of them. Cassian made sure not to accidentally challenge the beast by staring at its eyes. He stretched his hands out, at eye level to prevent the raptor from lunging at his hand.

" Easy. Easy. See my hands up. I'm just.. Handing… it…. To.. you."

The raptor stopped and rotated its head in curiosity. There was some intelligence in there. Then it snarled at Cassian. Instinctively Cassian backed up in fear. And then he thought of the way it looked at him. As if he was nothing. The same way Rosa looked at him. He thought of the turtle that frightened him. Frightened him like he was a…. Child. Rage built as he gritted his teeth. He rushed at the raptor, pinning it down as it moved wildly. And with his fist he pummeled it blow after blow. With each strike, he taught it a lesson.

Lesson one, he was in control.

Lesson two, he was in control

Lesson three, he was in control

Lesson four, he was in control

Lesson five, he was in control

Lesson six, he was in control

Lesson seven, he was in control

Lesson eight, he was in control

Lesson nine, he was in control

Lesson ten, his name was Cassian, and he feared no more.

Liam II Day 128 17:33 ( Southern Islets)

The two remained silent as they trekked across the rough Island terrain. The Jagged golden rocks protruded among the massive hill as raptors frequently circled the area searching for prey. Jezebel had refused to even look at Liam for most of the journey. She most likely feared being wrong. He had saved her. Using the white berries and the red berries he watched as she recovered from her sleep. And the snake, Liam shuddered at the terror of the knowledge of the creature's existence.

Once she had risen, she immediately bolted across the river again. And this time, Liam didn't argue. Though he hesitated in entering the dense forest, despite his luck on the beaches being ironically worse.

This journey must have meant something to her if she was so hellbent on getting killed.

The climb was rather steep, Their toes gripped the soft warm earth with their toes as they grabbed the trees as a way to move upwards. During the journey, they came across a variety of creatures, most they have already seen. Parasaurs, dodos, moschops, and even a raptor though fortunately it was sleeping. They came across a lime green four-legged herbivore. Iguanodon vicissitudinis. Jezebel climbed past Liam as he stared at the new creature in awe. In a flash, the creature screamed in pain as three white claws pierced through its sides. The tickle chicken, Cassian realized. Jezebel turned around so fast that she slipped and face-planted onto the ground. Blood gushed over the forest floor as the head of a giant feathered bird emerged behind the Iguanadon.

"Let's head down now!", Liam shouted over the squeals.

Jezebel ignored him at first and attempted to run up the steep hill. What the hell is she doing? Liam screamed in his mind. He looked at the bird which now stood fully over the dead Iguanadon. It looked back at him. I need to leave. He stood up and ran down the hill, tripped, and rolled into a tree. His vision blurred, as he desperately fought to remain steady. Shit! I left Jezebel behind. And then he thought of what she did to Uriah. Maybe she deserved this. Perhaps if she died, it would be for the better. However, he'd need to find the village and that was miles away. After a few seconds of struggle, he finally found his feet.

The creature was nowhere to be found. Relieved, Liam examined his wounds. Just a scratched-up elbow. It was simple, he looked for red berries and popped them in his mouth. Could he really do it? To leave her behind even for what she did? Was he a man of convictions or merely chaff in the wind?

Sebastian IV Day 128 17:46 ( Southern Islets)

" I'm sorry but we cannot continue this mission." Sebastian didn't believe those words would be uttered from his mouth. For he was the one who created it. This mission, their purpose.

Lien, a man who was the third oldest in the tribe, disagreed, however. "We haven't even scratched the surface of this island. We can't just quit now."

" And we can't keep losing people either."

Lien scoffed, his wrinkled face appalled at the statements being said. "So..so are we just going to throw a party. Sit here and grow old, maybe have kids of our own who'll probably die in this hell hole what then? What then Sebastian? What do we tell them? That we didn't try, that we just sat down with our thumbs in our asses and accept the shorthand we've been given. No.. no no no, I refuse that, I have to!"

The other people in the council murmured amongst each other. Although Lien and Sebastian were two opposing forces always combatting each other it seemed the others cared less. They sat back on their wooden seats, some staring at the sky watching the pteranodons. This was no council, or at least anything remotely civilized. It always seemed too easy for Sebastian. Making decisions and carrying them out. The only opposition was Lien and often he'd be scorned by the others. Lien was too stoic and his ideas were far less fun.

" Friend let me clarify what I said. So…so we don't get confused. This mission, I proposed, was when we thought we've seen it all. We thought the raptors were the only threats. Damn, we were wrong. So damn wrong. It was clear from the start we weren't prepared. We rushed in all hot-headed and cocky only to come back squealing. Yesterday, I only brought out a few men. We didn't go far, just a mile out. And then we were hit."

" By what?", Myra, one of the woman councilors spoke out.

" Carnotaurus pressor, that black she-devil was larger than a raptor and faster than one too."

" The hell? I've been here just as long as you have been here Sebastian. You're telling me for four long months this thing has been living under our noses? Is that what you're saying?"

" Again Lien, there is no telling where this thing came from. There are two possibilities my friend, both dreadful. The first is that it migrated here. It's the most logical one of course. Much of the Island we haven't even set foot on. And according to one of the dossiers, there's a northern region covered in snow. Yet all this heat is telling me otherwise."

"And the second?"

"It's running away from something. Everything on this Island has a counterforce. A method of balancing the environment. The dilophosaurs adhere to the dodo birds and parasaurs. That was before the raptors came in and scared them to the beaches. The Baryonyx hunted the fish until the Spinos took over. There's a pattern here. Small predators attack large prey, then even larger ones follow behind. Why am I saying this? It's because we need to build ourselves up. Expand-"

Lien cut in "- That's what I said-"

"-But slowly, and steadily. We barely mastered our own parts on this Island. How the hell do you expect us to survive in the swamps and the big trees?

Lien sucked on his tooth. "That's a bit of a wild assumption. We can handle our own. Only you prove to be incompetent. Today you sent a group of what? Thirteen people? Not even? We should have had more fighters back there. Oh, wait we barely do. All everyone does in this place is pretend that what they see in front of them is not real. Delusions."

Sebastian stood up.

" Hey, where are you going? Answer me."

" Lien I'm done arguing with you. Today we have visitors. And we want to show them what it's truly like to live with us. We'll have a feast and I expect all of you to be there."

" Sebastian-"

"-Enough, Lien." Sebastian raised his hands signaling the end of the meeting and walked away. The others followed suit, leaving poor old Lien sitting in defeat.

Jezebel Day 128 18:00 ( Southern Islets)

She hid in the ruins atop the mountain and basked in the view. In front of her, she saw the red metallic structure in its true form. It hung on nothing though the red light appeared to be beaming up into the sky above. It towered over several Islands, casting a shadow over everything below. She could see another white thin line behind it. A supply drop. It reminded her of her mission, but she did not want to stop sightseeing now. On her right massive walls of trees stood in the distance. Those trees are easily several hundred feet. She couldn't even comprehend what dangers lurked in those woods. In the distance, she could make out another pillar. It appeared to be blue. It was rather hard for her to see as the somewhat cloudy sky blocked most of it. On the right stood a massive volcano. Pillars of black smoke greeted the blue sky above the monstrosity.

Further on her right as walked across the peak of the mountain, she saw another metallic pillar. This one was green and it appeared to face her. Her heart started beating rapidly. This pillar was the one she'd stare at gloomily with her old tribe. She was close to their old base. If I know where to go, why haven't tried to find out if they were alive all this time? Tears appeared in her eyes. Judging from the size, she could make out that it was just about the same distance as the red one was to her. It would only take half a day's journey.

And then she realized. She had forgotten. She had forgotten who had done this to them. She had forgotten the terror that had slaughtered and sifted through her tribe as if they were merely wheat. Perhaps, this was a fool's journey. But she'd go through this alone. For all her sins, this was the only one she could fix.

" Jezebel..holy shi-."

Liam covered in mud appeared in the broken entrance of the temple. A strange sight but somehow a welcome one. She could see his eyes staring at the pillars. The sky was getting darker yet those alien structures glowed brighter. Finally, Liam drew his eyes back to her. Finally, she dropped the news.

" The drop dissipated, Liam. We'll have to go back."

He sighed lowering his shoulders. Jezebel understood. " We should build a camp here."