Well, there you have it, another new chapter.

Originally I had planned for it to be longer, but once I was pushing beyond 7k words I figured it would be better to split it into two. It was a fairly difficult one to write, especially considering the genral themes I'm trying to work for this, but I'm happy with the result. Not sure if it's my best chapter or even a good take on the subjects of alien culture and behavior, but I hope you all will be satisfied with this attempt.

Overall, as many of you probably already noticed, I'm doing my best to make the raptors feel alien while still being just human enough to be relatable, at least enough to make the relationship between the characters believable despite their differences. Can't say how good of a job I'm doing, but hopefully it's something positive.

Next chapter will be shorter and maybe also spicy, but it all depends on how the story develops.

As always, please leave a comment and/or review. I love reading them.

-x-

Chapter 16: The Chinese Room

It turned out oversized chickens were very affectioned with the beings they "mated" with – or at least that's how Chaser was acting towards Sam.

Throughout the day, whenever an opportunity arose, the raptor would try to find ways to nuzzle her neck, brush against her arms and sometimes even go as far as giving a playful nib at the back of her neck. Annoying, for sure, but also cute.

Mostly just strange, though. A raptor was the last creature one would expect to be capable of such gentle actions.

Chaser was also very talkative, more so than usual. Showing her binoculars to him seemed to have triggered some hidden curiosity within him, and now Chaser seemed determined to know everything about every little tool in her belt and backpack. Explaining these things helped both of them to expand their vocabulary, while also stopping Sam from thinking more about the implications of what had happened.

Of course, some items were easier to explain than others.

"So… it's like a throwing a rock, but really fast!" She spoke. "There is a thing in here which… pushes the little rocks forward and out of the gun" She held up the red, 12-gauge shotgun shell towards his face, even though she knew it wouldn't help him understand it. This one was a faulty extra she had found, too rusted and corroded by time to be fired but intact enough to serve as an example. "It's why it goes BANG, you see? The little rocks get thrown really fast".

The raptor was silent.

He didn't need to speak for her to figure out he was utterly confused. Although she was quite proud of noting it based solely on his limited expression.

On Chaser's side, there was a flurry of thoughts.

"How in the stars can she keep doing that?" He wondered. How could this soft skin make something so terrifying and strange sound so… mundane?

Hearing stories of these thunderers had been scary enough as a youngling, but they didn't hold a claw to the real deal. The sheer power Sam carried on her thin and soft arms rivaled that of a full-grown tyrant, spiting an awesome blast of sound and fire, tearing chunks out of bodies and killing living beings more quickly and effectively than even the best of hunters. If he was honest with himself, the first few days of their peaceful interactions had him constantly afraid of accidentally doing something that would scare or enrage the soft skin, enough for her to turn her weapon towards him. All it needed was a single blast to turn him into scavenger food, he knew it.

…But apparently, they were just tiny rocks?

She had showed him the strange blood-colored cylinder and its contents, how it held a strange dark sand mixed with many tiny orbs. According to Sam, those two simple elements were behind it all.

It was slightly infuriating how the soft skins supposedly created such incredible things out of what appeared to be simple materials. Just how on earth did they do this?

Was this the secret nature of all these strange structures and devices he couldn't explain? Were they just more ordinary materials that were organized and crafted in a specific way?

"Buuut… how can s-small thing make," He struggled to ask her this question. "Hoow can it be sooo fast?"

With that, it was Samantha's time to struggle. For how would she be able to explain the concept of rapidly expanding gas as a result of energy being released by a chemical reaction? They certainly hadn't gotten this far on their shared vocabulary.

Her hands gestures ahead of her as the woman tried to come up with something which Chaser found amusing. "It's almost as if she speaks with her hands".

"Look, you see…" He didn't and Sam still didn't know how to explain it. "It's a bit like fire, it creates fire, and the fire pushes the rocks forward."

Like fire? That only served to make him even more confused. He was aware it was part of the process, as you couldn't really miss the light coming from the barrel when she fired her thunderer, especially during the night. But he didn't know how the fire could be controlled in such a way as to accelerate those orbs like that.

However, there was a tiny spark of realization within his mind.

Chaser briefly remembered of seeing a small tree on fire, after being struck by lightning. It was a rare occurrence, so he watched it for a little while, and during this time he remembered seeing falling leaves from nearby trees being pushed upwards when they passed above the flames. Clearly fire was somehow projecting force upwards, and perhaps what the soft skins did was to harness that power in a concentrated way, thus not only gently levitating a leaf but with enough force to launch those tiny orbs faster than his eyes could track.

Did it answer his questions? Not really, for even with this tiny hypothesis it all still sounded too bizarre to be true.

Furthermore, to his dismay, there was little else Sam could give to him. She herself admitted not really knowing how exactly everything worked on its finest details, and that they also didn't know enough words yet for her to explain further. It was frustrating, but it also made him more eager to learn.

That would have to wait, however, as the two of them had another journey ahead.

-x-

There shouldn't be any delays this time. There were no rivers, swamps or bad terrain to stop them. No big predators in sight and, according to Chaser, no raptors. Beyond the forest they were currently traversing, were open fields easy to get across and gifted with long range visibility, eliminating any chance of ambushes or undesirable surprises.

All in all, this promised to be the easy part of a long journey, the final steps before the top.

It appeared even the weather decided to contribute, giving enough clouds to protect them from the harsh glare of sunlight, yet not carrying any rain. At this point, even the light breeze coming from the approaching sea helped to provide some relief.

So why was Sam beginning to feel like shit?

The two of them walked silently, with Sam a couple of steps ahead while the raptor used his long neck and powerful eyes to survey their surroundings. Like always, the jungle was teeming with life and sound, from little birds and insects chirping and singing to the deeper calls from larger dinosaur herbivores wondering somewhere out of sight.

The growing pit she felt in her stomach wasn't right. She should be feeling the growing excitement of finally leaving this hellish place, finally having a way out back to safety and civilization.

Some of the larger trees and their roots proved to be a bit difficult to move through. Chaser was right next to her, though, allowing her to use him for balance. His large form brought comfort and security, a reminder that she wasn't alone. With him beside her, she didn't have to constantly look over her shoulder, there was no longer any need for the deep paranoia which had dominated her minds for so many days. Now, she could even appreciate her surroundings for a bit, look at the beautiful and colorful fauna, hear the many sounds.

Yet it was all disturbed by the growing airs of uncertainty. The more she thought about how close she was, the worse she felt. Where was this anxiety coming from?

Up above was a group of pterodactyls, flying hundreds of meters away. She gazed at the group as it passed in a lazy "V" formation, her face bearing a deep frown. The woman continued walking.

The silence between the two of them was becoming annoying. She wanted something to distract herself and the jungle wasn't cutting it anymore. At the same time, she didn't want to talk because of the anxiety bubbling up. Dark corners of her mind almost wished for a sudden attack from a raptor or a dilophosaurus, just so she could mindlessly shoot at them with some of her remaining ammunition. Perhaps the adrenaline would help her forget these bad feelings.

Just what the hell was going on? There was something in her mind slowly taking over and she had no idea what it was, just a constant bad feeling. Was it the fear of finding no one waiting for her?

Couldn't be that, at least not fully. Even in the worst case, simply reaching the docks would already improve her situation. Yes, it would suck to stay even longer, but she had managed to survive through the very heart of the island just fine.

"Well, I guess not entirely out of my own merit…" She reminded herself. A small glance was all she needed to spot his brown feathers behind her. He was probably the only reason why she had reached this far at all. Thinking about it only made her feelings worsen. What was the current tally? Two, three? Was he going to save her life again before this was over?

"Over…" It was strange to think about it on those terms. What had happened between them – what he represented, was too big to simply end. Their situation wasn't like a man befriending a dog or some exotic animal, no, it was more akin of a first contact between alien species. On her shoulders rested a piece of knowledge that could change the world and force humanity to answer unprecedented questions. Not only had humanity raised the dinosaurs from extinction, but it had unintentionally resurrected a species just as capable of complex thought and emotion.

Was this what was creating this unease? Was it the realization she would have to present this monumental thing to the world? Not only that, but that if she failed, she would be branded as, at best, insane?

Samantha briefly wondered if Chaser felt something similar. Maybe not at the same level as herself, but how this could reflect on his immediate social groups, his "clan". God, it was so strange to think raptors were capable of forming societies, yet she had witnessed it with her own eyes, even spoken with them. She would be lying if she said there was no desire to learn more, to meet other members of his clan, maybe even his direct "family" (if such concept was applicable to them).

Alright, maybe she shouldn't think about that. "Oh great, now I just thought about meeting his parents and siblings, just like a new boyfriend!" The worst part was knowing it was partially true, given what they had done and that she had accepted to become his "mate". "Stupid, stupid, stupid!" She kept repeating inside her head. Why did she let herself say yes, why did she allowed things to escalate so much?!

It didn't matter, not at this point, but it still made her angry and frustrated at herself. There was so much at stake already and she just went there and made things even more complicated. How would anyone take her seriously if they found out? The most likely outcome was being charged with animal abuse, and even if she could somehow prove it was consensual it would still turn her into a freak in the eyes of many!

Her heart was accelerating, and her breathing was unsteady.

Chaser noticed right away but didn't know if he should intervene. It was clear she was in distress and showing clear signs of fear but given the lack of threats around them he could only guess this fear came from inside her mind. She was thinking about something, and that something was making her afraid.

Instead of following his desire to help, he forced himself to remain a few strides behind her. Whatever this was, it might be best to give her some distance first.

Of course, seeing her like that began to trigger his own thoughts, which soon turned into paranoia.

She hasn't been the same since they had become an item, and not in a positive way. "Did I do something wrong?" Was his first thought.

He replayed the memories of that night over and over, trying to find any indication of her being uncomfortable or unwilling. Had he come out as demanding? Did she take his proposal as an ultimatum? It didn't seem likely, but who knows.

What if she said yes and allowed everything to happen not because she truly wanted to, but because he had her in a vulnerable spot and was afraid of what he would do if she denied him?

That line of thought nearly made him freeze in terror.

"Focus, focus, it can't be!" He argued. No, had she been afraid of him, like she had been after he saved her from the venom spitters, she would've never let her guard up. Not only that, but she had plenty of opportunities to run away or to shoot him afterwards, or this morning really, yet she hadn't.

No, it didn't make any sense. Yes, there were many details about the nature of their relationship they couldn't yet fully talk yet due to the lack of time or vocabulary, but they both had made their consent very clear.

But simply giving consent did not eliminate the unknown, he figured.

Yes, it made much more sense to think about it this way. There were a million questions as to how they were going to proceed with this arrangement, and neither knew enough about the other understand how exactly they could accommodate mutual expectations and desires. Small things like shared responsibilities, specific roles or even just grooming had to be talked about. Even further conversations would be necessary for the topics of clans, siblings and relatives in general, how each side would behave and how big of a role they might have on their relationship.

…Just thinking about it was nearly giving him a headache.

Relationships amongst his kind were already varied and complicated enough, and now he would need to learn everything from zero regarding how soft skins did it. This was going to take a very long time, he realized.

Although, there was at least the small silver lining of having possibly figured out what was making his soft skin so agitated. Yes, it made more sense now.

Chaser was so engrossed on his inner thoughts he didn't realized Samantha had stopped moving, causing him to move straight into her and bump his head against her backpack.

With an annoyed yelp, he jumped back a few feet and regarded her.

He nearly voiced his annoyance at her sudden stop, until he realized why Sam had done so.

Not far away from them, the dense trees and bushes gave way to a large open field, which so happened to be occupied by a huge herd of crushers, as his clan called them. These large beasts were known for their tough armored plates along their backs – the origins of their name, however, came from the spiked ball at the end of their tails, a terrible weapon that could kill a full-grown adult with ease. His kind generally avoided them, as they were too difficult to hunt, even when alone.

Without thinking, Chaser lowered himself a bit to become less visible. They were close enough to the herd to be considered a threat by the nearby crushers, and so they had to be very careful. With a quick glance, he noticed his soft skin didn't appear as scared, opting to remain in her usual upright posture. It concerned him, but she was smaller than him, so he decided to remain silent for now.

For Samantha, the herd of ankylosaurus was more of an annoyance than anything else. Like most herbivores, they were very paranoid but only became aggressive if you attempted to approach them. Humans, in particular, were very small in comparison and were unfamiliar to them, so they weren't seen as an immediate threat. No, the real issue was her feathered companion. Were she alone, Sam would've simply moved across the field through the less populated area where she could keep a decent distance from individuals, especially the younger ones. However, with Chaser this simply wouldn't work, he was bigger and more inconspicuous because of his colorful feathers, he was a predator and similar enough to bigger ones to trigger the adult ankylosaurus into attacking.

No, the only safe option would be to go around the whole field – preferably keeping themselves completely out of sight.

She turned around and met his eyes. "Chaser, we-"

"Danger" he blurted it out "dannger ahead, yess?"

"Yes, danger ahead," she nodded with a tiny smirk. "we need to go… other way and then forward," he didn't know the word "around" yet, so she needed to find a different way to explain. "I was thinking of going uh, right?"

Truth to be told, she wasn't that sure which way was better, but vaguely remembered the left side having another swamp. She was not going through another one unless it was absolutely necessary.

His muzzle pointed slightly downwards. "No."

"What?"

"No," He repeated. "Noot going right."

Samantha was at a loss. She stared at him with an open jaw. What did he mean by that? Did he not want to go that way? Was he not understanding what she said?

She tried it again, this time in his language. "Chaser… there dangerr ahead, need to go other way. Walk right, then forward!"

This time he pointed his muzzle up. "Yes," and then it went down again, "But no going right."

"You not going right?"

"Us not going right."

Once again, she was left stunned. Was he… was he ordering her not to go?

"Great, your dinosaur boyfriend is now bossing you around" her mind told her. There was a mix of confusion and sparks of anger at the prospect, but she swept the second ones away. No, there must be a reason why he's saying that.

"Why no-ot go right?"

"Venom Spitters," He answered. "Right has too many."

Dilophosaurus? There was a bunch of them that way?

In her frustration, Sam switched back to English. "But there's two of us, and I have a gun!" she pointed to the weapon hanging across her torso. Sure, there wasn't a lot of ammunition left, but as long as they could scare away potential attackers there wouldn't be problem, right?

"Not good," was his reply, "I and Samm not enouugh-t."

The woman wanted to scream. She wanted to tell him she didn't need his approval and would go. But this wasn't right, she knew it. This was just a flurry of emotions overwriting her sense of reason. No, he obviously knew the area better than she did, so if he it was too dangerous he was probably correct.

But then what? How would they proceed?

After she voiced the question, the raptor remained silent for a moment, thinking.

"We go back, and then right."

What? Backtrack and take an even longer detour?

"But… how much back?" He couldn't answer this and she knew it, as they also haven't gone through words for time and distance, not on this scale.

Nevertheless, it still created a huge timing problem.

They had already left the observation post later than she wanted and they would barely make it in time if they didn't change their route. She did not want to be stuck out in the open during the night. A lot of the coastal areas were inhabited by bigger monsters, like the few adult tyrannosaurus rex the island was well known for. There wasn't enough ammo to take down something that big (assuming she could get enough shots out before it got to her).

The woman paced around in frustration. "Chaser, we can't! This won't work!"

"Why?"

"It'll take too long! The night is dangerous too!"

"Venom spitters more dangerous."

"I was fine last time!" she argued.

"O-oonly fine because Chaserr help" He replied simply.

Sam wanted to be angry. She could feel the frustration slowly boiling into it and wanted nothing more than to lash out at him for daring to… make a good point. The last time she had faced dilos, there were only two of them and she still nearly died. If Chaser didn't want to go, even though he was a raptor, then maybe it was indeed too dangerous. Even with his help, enough numbers could quickly overwhelm them.

But this still didn't solve the time constraints. Would they be forced to go back to the observation post for another night? She didn't think she would be able to sleep again on the same bed they…

Those thoughts were quickly shoved away. "Fuck, not now…" she told her brain.

"Chaser, look…" She matched his eye level and tried to reason with him once more. "We need to find shelter before night. If we go back, we won't have time."

The raptor looked away in a very human gesture. It seemed her emphasis on the problem was making him reconsider. After a few moments in silence, he matched her gaze once more.

"Night not problem" he said, and Samantha did a double take.

What did he mean? Was there some missing meaning she wasn't catching? Was it a vocabulary limitation?

She was about to question his words when he continued. "Chaser knows shelter, can stay there the night."

Oh…

A shelter. He knew a shelter on this alternative route?

Part of her wanted to dismiss his words right away but she stopped herself. He had exceeded her expectations enough times already. If he was saying there was a shelter (even though nothing on her maps indicated so), than there probably was something. She didn't know how comfortable it might be, but as long as it protected them from dangers…

Okay, this was far from ideal and Sam didn't want to lose another day trying to reach the coast, but it was better than nothing. Better to arrive later than to never arrive at all. At least she would be able to get an even closer look at the old docks, if the geography allowed, and hopefully get a better picture of what she would find there.

"So… a shelter?"

"Yes, for Chaser and Sam."

"And we can reach it before the night?"

"Yesss!"

"I guess… sure, lead the way,"

The raptor wasted no time in doing so, taking the lead of the duo and going back the way they came. As expected, they had to backtrack for a considerable amount of time, and then change directions to go around the open area and the dilo territory. This area was far away from the old roads and crumbling infrastructure, remaining mostly untouched, which made progress slower than what Sam wanted. Eventually, the two had to go upwards to a higher terrain level, near a series of hills.

-x-

Even for the raptor, going up the hill took considerable effort. There was overgrown vegetation all around them, limiting movement and hiding the ground's true shape. More than once he had stumbled due to holes, rocks and hidden roots. His soft skin mate faced an equal struggle, although the occasionally could use tree branches and trunks for support. He learned quickly that she could also use his body for that same function (although she needed to be careful with his feathers). They were both breathing heavily when they finally reached more even ground.

He watched as his mate took a moment to stretch her arms and legs, letting out a satisfied sigh as she did so. His eyes were glued to the curves of her body.

Ever since last night, and perhaps even before it, he had become more and more used to her once alien body shape. Now, he was beginning to appreciate it, to find qualities he desired, be it her long legs, her arms or just her tender skin. Truly there was something special about her kind, once you got past the initial weirdness.

Chaser wondered if she felt the same about his own physique. Although he was generally confident about himself and proud of taking care of his appearance, there was always a little voice of self-doubt in the back of his mind. Such vulnerability was particularly strong when considering the foreign nature of Sam. For all he knew, the things he considered important in his appearance might hold no value to her.

Still, if she was willing to be with him, then obviously there was something he was doing right.

He was so enthralled in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the soft ground next to him collapsing under the weight of his next step. The raptor let out a surprised bark as he lost his footing and fell forward. Panic arose as he feared falling down the rocky cliff downhill and he struggled to grip something with his claws. Thankfully, most of his body was still and the flat surface, with only his left leg and his meaty tail hanging.

After he just managed to stop himself from slipping further, his mid-section was hugged by Sam's left arm.

He looked at her and saw her right arm hooked around a tree trunk, shaking. Holding a human would be difficult enough, but Chaser was slightly heavier. Sam also needed to be careful not to pull out his feathers. Still, the main point was to make sure he wouldn't slip further near the edge, and so pulling him a foot closer to her was enough.

"For fuck's sake!" She cursed with a strained voice, "Goddammit…"

Chaser stood up as soon as he was able to, while Samantha kept putting pressure on his middle to make him step further away from the cliff. Once they were at a safer distance, they both relaxed.

She took a quick glance at his legs to check for any wounds or weird angles. "You good?"

"Yess"

Before she could ask where they should head now, there was a rumble from the sky. They both looked up and her eyes squinted as she tried to see beyond the tree canopy and into the sky. Out in the distance, the source of the sound revealed itself as more rainclouds. Their luck with the weather had run out.

Far away at the moment but would still hit them in a few hours.

The sight added more frustration into her mind. Another obstacle, another problem to deal with. When the fuck would she get a break?

Neither bothered to say anything else. Chaser turned around and led her away.

As they moved, the ground became rockier, sporting less vegetation and more sparse trees. There were decently sized volcanic rocks strew about, and Samantha had to be careful not to trip herself this time. In addition to the already incoming rain, their remaining sunlight was quickly fading, because despite the relatively short distance they had travelled, it had taken a fair amount of time to simply climb the hill.

From this height, Samantha could see the coast more clearly, as if she was standing atop the observation tower once more. It was so close yet so far.

There was still the dense jungle stretching below her, with all its obstacles and dangers. She wanted to curse at it, to set it on fire and watch it go ablaze. She was ashamed of that, but it was true.

Of course, she could never really bring herself to simply destroy a place like this, especially when it was the only place in the world with living, breathing dinosaurs (or at least closely resembling chimeras with as much original DNA as possible). More than that, this wasn't just a wild place anymore, no, it was the Chaser's home, of him and his clan. For all the pain and suffering this place had inflicted on her body and mind, she had discovered something… someone who opened a window to a whole new world to her.

And that someone was just as worried about the incoming rain and nightfall as she was.

"Chaser, where is the shelter you told me about?" A small part of her mind realized she should've tried to make her sentence a bit simpler to make it easier for him. Maybe a single word would've sufficed.

"C-close, nearrr!" He replied, looking attentively towards some of the rocky plateaus which dotted the hilltop.

The girl raised an eyebrow. She really hoped he knew where to look, because she really didn't want to sleep on a tree branch again.

He took a few steps towards a large boulder and then looked back at her and gestured to her to follow him with his long neck. She did so and went over to where he was now standing.

The raptor seemed to be searching for something on the surface of that large boulder. He used his claws to scrape away some of the moss and fungus growing along his eye level.

Samantha thought she knew what he was doing but found it extremely unlikely. No, there was no way this could be what she was thinking.

Except a few moments later Chaser proved her initial intuition correct, or at least that's what it looked like.

Hidden by the moss were a few indentations on the rocky surface of the boulder. They were barely noticeable, to the point Samantha only realized they were there after Chaser carefully dragged his main claw along them.

It was five simple strokes. Four of them arranged in a diamond shape and the last one as a simple vertical line to the left of the diamond.

For a moment, the woman had to stop herself from sitting down. Her knees felt weak, and her head was swimming. This was too much for her. It all made sense now, why Chaser was so quick to figure out her drawings on the sand near the river, or why he could understand her descriptions of shapes so easily.

She stood beside him and took a closer look at the symbols. "Would that be the correct term?" She wondered. They were spaced a bit further than what her hand could cover and were fairly shallow. It would be near impossible to find them if you didn't know they were there, especially with the previous moss covering it all.

In a few seconds her mind came up with every single theory that could explain it all away, every single thing she could remember from her basic knowledge of geology. Yet it was plain obvious this was all futile. No, the lines were too homogenous and positioned in a too good of an angle to be explained away. They were very much deliberate.

Still, it wasn't entirely impossible. Nature was known to occasionally shape things into very artificial forms through entirely natural processes.

Sam looked away from the lines, focusing instead on her companion. He was standing beside her and looking around in his usual idle posture. The diamond and the line were positioned about the same height as midway up his neck, a simple glance below his eyesight. She didn't know much about raptor ergonomics, but she guessed it was comfortable and intuitive enough for the average specimen to observe things at such an angle.

Of course, she could've just asked him about it to confirm her theories, but she just needed to figure out this on her own.

For her next piece of evidence, she grabbed one of his clawed hands.

The raptor snapped his head towards her in an instant, his neck feather flaring up a bit in surprise. A few days ago, this would've terrified her, but now it only made her slightly amused.

"Here, Chaser, take a step closer…" The raptor allowed himself to be guided to stand in front of the lines again.

Samantha carefully extended his hand towards it. At full extension, he could reach just above the top of the diamond shape, and just below it as well. The shapes themselves were at a very comfortable position for him to touch…

"…Well, fuck me" She quietly whispered. These symbols weren't just anywhere, they were located at the perfect height for a raptor to look at them and interact with their claws.

The rock itself wasn't particularly tough. There were already some cracks here and there, and she could even scratch a tiny bit of material with her hands, if she applied a lot of force. So it wouldn't be that difficult to do something with rudimentary tools like… sharpened rocks.

This meant… there was the very real possibility they had been carved into the stone by the raptors themselves. This was both amazing and scary. She could barely think straight. She didn't know how they would do it, probably using convenient rocks like early humans did, but it was very possible they did it.

It was one thing to say words and sentences, to figure out certain puzzles and drawing in the sand. This was all impressive, but it wasn't – in theory, at least – concrete evidence of a fully, human-like sapient intelligence. No, as impressive as it was, many animals could do that and much more, such as using basic tools and forming complex social structures.

These lines broke all of that.

Because recognizing shapes was one thing, but intentionally imprinting them on a surface, without any human guidance whatsoever and probably through the use of tools, was something no other living thing did. Sure, some animals had been taught how to paint, and there was some debate on whether they were really intentionally creating things through their imagination or not, but there was still a human element present. This, however, was not the case.

This could very well be explicit evidence of culture… or even some sort of rudimentary writing system!

Sam rubbed the sides of her head. "Alright, calm down girl, get it under control. As exciting as this is, you still need to get back to human civilization."

Chaser, meanwhile, watched the way Sam reacted with a mix of confusion and amusement. He couldn't understand for the life of him why she was so enthralled by a simple sign. Compared to what her kind did, this was nothing, yet she seemed more stunned about it than he himself had been with the stuff she had shown him in these last few cycles. She carried a tool of awesome destruction in her soft hands, could invoke the light of the sun and stars from a tube, yet looked at this as if it was more amazing than all of that.

"Soft skins really are weird…" He whispered to himself. Then again, it was this curiosity which made her so endearing to him. He barely contained the involuntary shudder down his spine. By the stars, she really did snare him, didn't she?

No matter. This was neither here nor there. They needed to find shelter before the water arrived.

Luckily, it appears his memory and sense of direction was still sharp.

There were many shelters his kind used throughout the seasons, as was necessary for a predatory species that relied on a heavy meat diet. Their survival depended on keeping a close eye on the migrating herds of large herbivores and nesting areas of smaller prey. Yes, Fallen Rock was their primary nest and "Home", but there was always a significant number of clan members elsewhere going on hunts, patrolling their territory, getting into contact with other clans, or even just travelling to get a change of scenery and get away for a bit. Thus, there were a number of places that were well known for being temporary shelters, should one of his people need rest or hiding.

Right now, Chaser and his soft skin mate were near one such place, and he knew it from the sign previous members had carved on the rock in front of him. A simple thing it was, the four slashes vaguely resembling the rock his clan took its name from, with an extra slash showing which general direction the shelter was at.

The practice of using these simple shapes to mark places had become popular in the last few seasons, ever since one of the older members had come up with the idea (which Chaser suspected had been inspired by the strange drawings which would often be found near and inside the soft skin hollow rocks). They already used strokes or slashes on twigs and bones to keep tabs on certain things, like the total number of viable eggs after a breeding season or the cycles between each major hunt. It was only logical they would eventually find other ways to make this useful, or at least that's what Chaser thought.

A far away thunder reminded the two of them of the limited time left.

Chaser met Samantha's eyes and gestured for them to keep going. "Samm, o-oollow" he croaked.

"Follow," she said slowly. "There's an f there, mister raptor."

"Oo – Wwalloww?" He tried again.

It brought a smile to her lips. "Just go, we'll try again later."

The shelter turned out to be a small cave, part of the many lava tunnels which the island was known for. It was slightly below them, along the edge of a small cliff and facing the coast. It gave a good view of the surrounding flats while remaining fairly hidden by the vegetation.

Chaser made sure to go in first. He didn't think there would be any clan mates here during this season, but it was better to make sure. He let out a call, just loud enough to make his presence known. After a few seconds without a reply, he concluded it was indeed empty.

The woman followed the raptor inside. By this point, the sky was already covered by grey clouds and sunset was fast approaching, so natural light was barely enough to see the inside of the cave. It wasn't much of a problem for Chaser, for his kind had excellent eyesight, but it was for his companion.

She sat down and took a deep breath, then proceeded with her usual routine of setting down her bag and shotgun and getting settled in this new place. However, before she could begin to open her backpack, something caught her eye.

There was a glint of something further inside, on the opposite wall.

A bit curious to what it was, she instead opted to get her torch. With the flick of a button, the cave was illuminated by artificial light.

…it only lasted a few seconds, before the flashlight fell on the rocky floor and pointed outside.

Chaser was beside her in an instant, seeing if she had hurt herself or if there were threats nearby.

The only thing he saw was his mate, sporting wide eyes and slightly shaking.

With quick breaths, Sam bent down and picked up the torch (still working, thankfully). Once again, she shined the light towards the opposite wall, and her breath was caught in her throat.

What had caught her attention was a measly piece of sharpened quartz, which itself raised a lot of questions. But the most important thing was what was behind it, covering the walls of the cave.

There were colorful shapes there, dozens of them. Not the rough edges of rocks and spires, but the distinct shapes of creatures. There were birds and mammals, snakes and insects, dinosaurs of all sizes and shapes. Amongst them, there was the occasional outlines of hands, but not human hands.

These were cave drawings, paintings made by previous occupants. These weren't made by humans, the hands made it clear – three fingers, bearing sharp claws – these were the works of raptors. They had created art just like early humans had.

It was undeniable now.

Samantha didn't know what to think or what to feel. She felt the joy of making such an amazing discovery and the crushing weight of responsibility over it. She was the contact point between two civilizations, and it was too much for her, too much responsibility for just a young woman hoping to make some quick cash with old documents.

There was, at least, a tiny spark of comfort in knowing she wasn't just seeing things. This was real. The abilities Chaser had displayed, his intellect and actions weren't just her brain humanizing an animal due to loneliness, but the real actions of an intelligent being.

…This also made her actions from last night less shameful, if only a tiny bit. She could at least say with full certainty she had not abused an animal.

Speaking of him, the raptor regarded her with a look of confusion. She ignored his expression and approached the mural.

The cave ceiling was barely two meters high, so not only were there rudimentary paintings covering the entire wall, but also a few tiny ones on the cave ceiling. She took a closer look at a red painting of what appeared to be a large brachiosaurus, near the entrance of the cave.

At first, she wondered if the raptors had used blood as paint, but blood would eventually lose the red hue with time, and this image appeared to be here for a considerable amount of time. No, it was more likely they used perhaps a mix of clay and sand, or maybe specific berries and plants. Either way, this demonstrated their capacity to acquire resources and transform the nature around them.

However, another problem presented itself: How would the raptors create such complex forms with their limited manipulation?

They only had three fingers and no opposable thumbs.

To answer that, she remembered examples of corvids grabbing sticks with their beaks to use as tools. It wouldn't be much of a stretch for the raptors, and their long necks would give them a very good range of motion.

Her hypothesis was quickly confirmed after she scanned the cave floor for evidence. Not far from her was a little pile of sticks which had been cut and sharpened. Sam grabbed one of them and gave it a closer look.

"Hmmm…" The tip was slightly red, almost the same shade as the drawings. Furthermore, about halfway to the opposite end were tiny indentations on the upper and lower parts, the kind which could've been left by teeth.

This was all… a lot.

She left the stick where she had found it and walked away from the wall. God, she would give an arm and a leg to get her cellphone or a good camera. Well, tough luck, she supposed. At least she could write it down on her notebook or something, it would have to do.

There was much to consider, and she would need a few hours to go through all this information. But before all that, there was a camp she needed to set up and supplies to go through.

As Samantha walked back to where her things were, she noted how Chaser continued to stare at her in silence. "You really are something else, you know that?" She joked.

All Chaser knew is that he found her very weird sometimes.