Disclaimer: I DO NOT own the video game franchise Fossil Fighters by Artdink and some other company I cannot remember the name of nor am in any away associated with them or their affiliates.
Author's Note: Didn't give the last chapter enough time to pend to pick up follows, favs, reviews, and so on, so I'm unsurprised to see a lacking. However, it would be much appreciated that you do drop at least a li'l thumbs-up/thumbs-down review on my chapters whether they're my latest addition or I added them 16.9 billion years ago when my father the Black Hole Sun killed off the dinosaurs (just kidding (I think)). Oh, and there's this one other FF Fic I've been reading lately, and it's pretty freaking awesome, though the first few chapters are pretty amateur. Now, enjoy.
Chapter 2: The Green Hero
Hunter blinked awake, at first feeling groggy about the early morning and starting to go back to sleep when memories of the previous day flooded his mind. First, the part Duna had been made out to be a monster at the coliseum, a bitter memory he wished he could've locked away in the darkest corners of his mind.
Then the ethereal moments of last night came. Of Duna, in his arms, the two of them locking lips. The far-off memory was like a dream. But when he licked his lips, he could still taste strawberry Chap Stick so faintly it may have just been in his head. But when he left his room for the living room of his suite, he found a pair of plates stained with omelet grease and cheese on the coffee table, and the motionless form of Duna asleep in her true dinaurian form on his sofa. Her jacket and leggings were draped across the back of the couch.
Moving in careful silence, Hunter retrieved the plates and brought them into the kitchen and started washing them off.
"You're up," a sound like a whispering angel said behind Hunter, startling him despite its grace.
Hunter turned and saw Dune standing on the edge of the kitchen's tile floor and the plush rug of the den. She had a cotton blanket around her shoulders, but Hunter could see her purple undergarments. He turned back to the sink.
"Yeah," he said. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"I've been up for a while. Sorry, I meant to leave but I—"
"It's no trouble," Hunter said. "A friend in need, right?"
Duna bowed her head, thinking about Raptin's words. "Your father has approved of our marriage!" It echoed around inside her skull painfully. Her father was on his deathbed now, and needed to e certain she'd be cared for after he passed, but could he really have been so desperate as to approve of Raptin, clearly the dinaurian whose genes went into the birth of gigantophis, the hundred-foot serpent?
"Hunter, I have to tell you something," Duna said, but stopped. Would it be a good idea to tell him?
"What?" Hunter asked, freezing in place but trying to seem casual. He almost hoped she wouldn't say what he thought she was going to say.
Duna decided not to tell him. Holt and Hunter were the friendly type of rivals. Raptin and Hunter were blood enemies, and such a confession might not end well. She quickly came up with an alternate truth.
"Thank you for being such a good friend," she said. "Ever since the volcano, you've treated me better than anyone ever has before, dinaurian or human. Thank you."
Hunter returned to scrubbing the cheese off the last plate. He was almost upset she didn't say what he thought she was going to say. But he feared jeopardizing their current relationship. After all, a dinaurian and a human? The pressure from their two kinds would probably force them to split, and thus ruin everything they ever had.
"You're welcome, Duna," he said, praying for something to cut off any other confessions.
Suddenly, one of the doors in the suite swung open, and Nychus wobbled out. It walked casually by Duna into the kitchen, hooking its claws around the handle to the fridge and swinging it open. It stuck its face in it, and when it pulled its face back out, an oversized piece of steak in its mouth. It kicked the fridge shut before returning to its room.
"What was that?" Duna asked, enjoying the comic relief.
"Nychus is small enough to let out of its medal while I'm in the hotel," Hunter said, also reveling in the comedy of it all. "Just don't tell Spinax. Last thing we need is an angry allosaur, right?"
Duna giggled and promised not to, turning back into the den. Hunter watched her behind her back as she retrieved her clothes from the back of the couch. He blushed and had to turn his head after she dropped her blanket and bent over to put on her pants, mooning him and putting a stiffness in his pants. Thank god for the maneuverability of pajamas.
"I need to go," Duna said after she was fully dressed.
"Do you have to?" Hunter said without thinking. Hurriedly, he added, "I mean, if you've gotta go, it's okay, but…"
"Sorry," she said. "My dad needs me."
"Dad?"
Duna realized her mistake and quickly corrected herself. "I meant King Dynal."
"Pretty unique words aren't they? How'd you mix them up?"
"Bad luck?"
Duna produced her portable warp device and punched a few buttons and warped away before Hunter could say anything more to her.
Usually, Hunter knew, when you mixed up two words that were distinct, it meant the one was on your mind, or you weren't admitting something. Was something wrong with Duna's dad?
Dismissing it, Hunter dried off the last plate, but not before remembering he had a dishwasher two plates away from full.
FFAFFAFFA
"Where's Duna at?" Rosie asked as Hunter walked into the coliseum's reception.
"She had something she needed to take care of with Dynal," Hunter said.
Rosie froze. "Wait, you actually know why she's missing?"
Hunter realized he usually didn't actually know why Duna was missing and said something even stupider: "We were hanging out together late last night."
Rosie jumped at the opportunity. "Oh, so you're getting' down with a dinaurian girl, eh? What's it like sleeping with an alien?"
"That's not what I said!" Hunter said.
Rosie laughed out loud. "Oh, you should see how red your face is! Don't worry, I was only kidding. Come on, let's see who you're up against today. Holt said he was planning on challenging you today."
"Oh did he?" Hunter said. "And how would you know that?"
"Umm, his blog?"
Hunter laughed and stepped up to the counter.
"Hey, Tiffany," he greeted the receptionist who'd worked there since he became a Fossil Fighter. "Who am I up against today?"
"No one," she said, shocking both Rosie and Hunter. It was a tradition that Hunter mop the floor with some poor shmuck every day and twice on Sunday to get the audience ready for the day's Fossil Battles. "The whole day s dedicated to a grudge match between two other Fossil Fighters."
"Who?" Rosie and Hunter asked in unison.
"You won't believe this," she said. "It's Vivosaur Man…against himself. Supposedly the Vivosaur Man wearing a purple mask is actually a fake, and he wants to prove it by beating him in a Fossil Battle. Only the true Vivosaur Man, and yourself, Hunter, are undefeated champions here on Vivosaur Island."
"When's the match start?" Hunter asked, putting his hand over his forehead. He had a feeling as to who this false Vivosaur Man in the purple mask was.
"Fifteen minutes."
FFAFFAFFA
"P.A., what do we have here?" Slate asked.
"Well, Slate, it would appear as though it's a grudge match between a pair of Vivosaur Men," P.A. said. "It would seem we're expecting one arduous match, because the roster is filled up with nothing but Vivosaur Man versus Vivosaur Man!"
"No matter which one wins, this is certain to crush some child's dreams, wouldn't you say P.A.?"
"Definitely, Slate. Look, they're sending out their vivosaurs!"
The Green Hero was first, sending out Guan, a guanlong, Proto, a protoceratops, and Aopteryx, an archaeopteryx. They seemed just as upsetted by the sight of the Purple Hero as their master.
The Purple Hero then sent out his own vivosaurs, a much deadlier variety. Taking the lead was Tarbo, flanked by Shanshan and Elasmo.
The Green Hero was at a disadvantage with his lower LP vivosaurs, and was given the first move.
"Proto…Metamorphosis," the Green Hero said in a raspy voice.
The dog-sized pink ceratopsid began to glow with a light from within. It grew rapidly, only a white silhouette visible of it, and three horns sprouted from its head. When the light faded, a blue-scaled triceratops, Tricera was left standing where Proto previously was.
"Now…Aopteryx…Ancient Power…"
The Aopteryx began a similar transformation, growing large and shedding feathers until the light faded, leaving the blue and white allosaurus Allo.
"Guan…finish with…Great Unmasking…"
This time, instead of a light, a raging, red inferno coated the vivosaur. Flaps of scaly hide fell to the ground and curled up like dead insects before burning away into oblivion. As the flames died and the black smoke dissipated in the air, a great fiend could be seen amongst the flames.
It was definitely T-Rex, the tyrannosaurus, but its build was all wrong. It was sleek and lean, and looked like it was ready for a sprint. Deadly claws extended from the backs of its hands, and it seemed to be made of smoke and fire. Where its eyes should have been were pits of raging black flame.
"Slate, do you know what that thing is?!" P.A. asked, his voice quivering.
"N-no clue, P.A.," Slate said. "It's like no vivosaur I've ever seen!"
The Green Hero raised his arms in the air. "Grovel before…T-Rex Lord…! The world's…most unstoppable force!" He glared over at the Purple Hero. "Not even the great ignosaurus of the legends can stop him."
Hunter was petrified in his Purple Hero mask. What was a T-Rex Lord? He'd never seen such a creature. Even Igno couldn't beat it? The only other vivosaur that Hunter met that could compete with the fiery lizard was the frigisaurus, Frigi!
"Tarbo, attack the abomination!" Hunter ordered.
The purple tyrannosaur charged T-Rex Lord, unyielding to the mysterious force. It chomped down on its neck, but leaped back, screaming in pain as smoke billowed from its mouth.
A fire type, eh? "Elasmo, why don't we cool it off!"
The purple plesiosaur roared and spat a pool of water into the ground and swam about in it, moving so fast it created a whirlpool before launching the aquatic tornado towards the T-Rex Lord, but as soon as it connected, the water evaporated into steam.
"Kroo?" Elasmo growled in confusion.
"Show them your power…T-Rex Lord," the Green Hero ordered.
The immense vivosaur charged, attacking Tarbo first. It stuck the blades on its hands deep into Tarbo's head and chest, killing it instantly, and tossed the corpse at Shanshan, fazing it before I could return Tarbo to its medal. The abomination then unleashed its fiery breath on Elasmo, and when the red flames finally relented, all that was left to return to my medal was a blackened pile of ash.
"Did you see that Slate?" P.A. commented. "This Green Hero Vivosaur Man doesn't play fair! The Purple Hero couldn't even end his turn!"
"Yeah, I saw it too, P.A.," Slate said. "But that awesome power… I don't think the Purple Hero stands a chance, true Vivosaur Man or not!"
"But with a stunt like that one, sad to say we have to give a handicap to the Purple Hero. He'll get to select two more vivosaurs to replace his defeated Elasmo and Tarbo. Until then, there will be a short intermission."
T-Rex Lord looked up defiantly at the box where Slate and P.A. sat before crushing Shanshan's skull under its foot.
"Three vivosaurs!" P.A. shouted.
FFAFFAFFA
Hunter sat in a private break room, looking at his medals. Igno and Frigi where his most powerful vivosaurs, but they were his life-and-death only medals, and as long as that other brute wasn't just talking big, he knew that he wouldn't stand a chance against T-Rex Lord even with both of them on the field. The only thing he could think of that mind stand a chance against it…
"Is Guhnash himself?" Duna's voice said behind Hunter from seemingly nowhere.
Hunter spun around and saw the dinaurian girl in her human disguise. She had a fist at her left side.
"Glad you could make it," Hunter said, "just in time to see two giants slain with one abomination."
"You mean T-Rex Lord," Duna said knowingly. "He's the sort of thing the dinaurians had tried to create millennia ago. The only thing that can stop it is the might of Guhnash or his three brains, Guhvorn, Guhweep, and Guhlith."
"Both of which I killed five years ago," Hunter groaned.
Duna held out her hand that had been closed in a fist before, opening it to reveal three Dine Medals with three very familiar looking grey creatures painted and engraved onto it.
"Are those…?"
"Guhnash's three brains," Duna said. "Winning this Fossil Battle means more than you could imagine, Hunter. Take these medals, and use them to slay the T-Rex Lord."
End Chapter
Author's Note: Mm, I love these cliffhangers. Some of you might be screaming, "How does it make sense that Hunter has Frigi and Igno but not the Guh- trio?!" Well, because I don't like jacking around with time machines. Shit gets too real with them bad boys. Anywho, Fun Fact time!
Fun Fact: I have written both this chapter, the previous chapter, and virtually every chapter in my Fic Frost Emblem with a 50 pound Alaskan husky on my lap. Bonus fact; though it goes unmentioned do to my insolence, if T-Rex Lord survives the battle-actually, this might be good info for the next chapter. So, that bonus fact just went, "Buh-bye."