Scars

by DarkHououmon

Ever since their formation, the Dino Squad have always managed to keep Veloci in the dark about their secret. But what would happen if he did find out? And what if he was far more capable than they initially thought? Despite what fairy tales may say, the bad guys don't always lose...

8. Broken

Max was confused. "What?" The jock asked as he kept his eyes on the road.

Fiona lowered her front body over her motorcycle, leaning forward as she did so. "I thought I saw something just run by us a few seconds ago." She slowly eyed the alleyways that were still ahead of them nervously.

"I didn't see anything." Max said somewhat suspiciously. "Are you sure you weren't just seeing things?"

"I'm telling you, I saw something...!" Fiona snapped. It wasn't Max that was making her feel on edge right now. It was the atmosphere of this place combined with the fact that she was certain that someone was now following them. And with the design of their bikes, it might not be too difficult.

Just as Max opened up his mouth to try to settle Fiona down, he too saw a figure flash by, but unlike Fiona his was directly in his field of vision. He stopped his bike, slamming on the brakes and smelling hot rubber as the tires skidded to a halt. Surprised, Fiona slammed on her brakes too, and her bike came to a halt next to Maxwell's motorbike. The figure Max had just seen was about human-sized it seemed. It looked black but that might have been because it was nighttime. It looked to be two-legged, and it just zipped by, from one side of the road to the other. It quickly disappeared in an alleyway.

"I guess you weren't kidding..." Max said as he eyed the alleyway. "I'm sorry for doubting you." He apologized.

"So you saw it too?" Fiona asked. Max gave a nod. "What do you suppose it is?"

"I don't know." Max said, his eyes narrowing. "But we're about to find out."

He and Fiona approached the alleyway. As they got close to it, they hopped off their bikes. They leaned them against the side of the building only inches away from where the space between the two buildings began. They took off their helmets and placed them on the small vehicles. They soon stood in front of the dark alleyway. Shadows obscured most of the space, save for a little light that was shining on the concrete. The familiar smell of trash cans mixed in the air, and so did another scent. It seemed familiar to the pair, but they couldn't quite put their fingers on it.

They hesitated for a second, and then stepped into the alleyway. They kept their guard up, glancing around for any sign of life and prepared themselves for an ambush. They felt vulnerable in this alleyway. It was a dead end. In front of them was a tall brick wall, and the alleyway wasn't too large. It looked to be a little too small for them to go dino. If they got into trouble here, they would not be able to completely transform, but they did have another defense: claws and teeth. They didn't have to fully transform to fight off an enemy.

As they ventured further into the small alleyway, the darkness soon made it hard for them to see. As their visibility vaporized, their other senses started to kick in. They kept their sense of hearing on full alert, listening for any sound like footprints or growling, anything. They looked around their surroundings again, even though they couldn't see anything in this dark place.

"I'm beginning to wonder if we were both seeing things..." Max finally said after they had looked around the alleyway for a few minutes without seeing anything. The thing that they believed they saw looked too large to hide in one of the trash cans, and the alleyway, although dark, didn't offer a lot of places to hide.

"Both of us?" Fiona found that hard to believe. "How could we both imagine the same thing?"

"Well if we did see something, it looks like it disappeared." Max said, placing his hand on his head and scratched his scalp. "Maybe it was scared of us."

They nearly jumped several feet when they heard a cold laughter behind them. Their bodies tensed up and their eyes widened in shock. They quickly realized the truth. They had been followed! They slowly turned around towards the entrance of the alleyway. The figure was back, although this time it looked more human than before. They couldn't tell who it was at first because of the darkness. But the figure wasn't very tall. It appeared to be about the same height as they were, if not a little shorter. The figure appeared to have long hair that was flowing slightly in the mild breeze that swept through the area.

Fiona and Max stood their ground, both adopting a fighting stance to battle whoever was threatening them. The figure hadn't made a move towards them, but their cackle had continued. The voice was definitely feminine. She was taunting them as she stood there in a relaxed composure. Her laughter was grating on Max and Fiona's nerves. After a few more seconds of silence from the two Dino Squad members, the figure finally decided to speak.

"My my, aren't you two up passed your bedtime?" The figure asked as she chuckled darkly again. "But then again, I suppose I should not blame you. After all, I know the reason you are here..and I am sure you know why I am here."

That voice! Max's eyes narrowed dangerously. He knew who this was. One of Victor's followers, one of the reasons they couldn't save Caruso. "You...!" Suddenly all sorts of bad memories of what happened not so long ago returned to his mind.

Fiona hadn't forgotten that voice either. She took a step forward, looking just as angry as Max did. "What do you want, Troodon?!"

Oscura took a couple steps forward. "What? I can't say hello to a couple of old friends?" She asked sarcastically.

"We are not friends!" Fiona snapped, giving Oscura a glare that could kill.

Oscura laughed as she began to circle the pair like a wolf pack circling a downed moose. She sneered as she saw that the two teenagers didn't take their eyes off of her. She continued to circle them, preventing them from running away from her and forcing them to face her. She suspected that they would rather ran than fight her because of their concern for Caruso. Their other two friends were somewhere in the city, she knew that. Michelle would take care of them.

"What are you doing here?" Max asked angrily. "Haven't you caused enough trouble?"

Oscura didn't stop circling, but she did look at Max with an almost horrified look on her face. "Me? Not cause enough trouble?" She stared at him for several seconds before breaking out into an almost maniacal laughter. "That's rich! I could never cause enough trouble!" She declared through laughs.

Max's eyes started to glow. "Get out of our way..or I'll...!"

Oscura chuckled. "Or you'll what? Lose your temper like you did with your precious friend?"

"How did you know what..." Max's eyes stopped glowing. He was shocked that Oscura would even know about that. How could she have found out? She wasn't even there when the argument took place!

"Oh I overheard your friend Caruso mentioning it." Oscura responded as she shrugged her shoulders. "He sounded upset."

Upon the mention of their missing friend, Fiona's eyes got a yellow glow to them like they would if she were to go dino. "Where are you hiding Caruso?!"

Oscura burst into laughter once more. Was this girl joking?! Was she really stupid enough to believe that she would give out such information so easily? Oscura grinned evilly. This girl was going to be fun to mess with. She could tell that already. "Why should I tell you anything?" She asked as she took a step forward.

Fiona growled, her Spinosaurus teeth starting to show up as she pulled her lips back in a snarl. The glow in her eyes intensified and Max was starting to become a little scared of her right now. "If you don't want to find out how easily my teeth can tear into your skin..." She said in a low, almost menacing voice.

Oscura's hand glowed and turned into the familiar pink-skinned hand of her Troodon form. She reached out with her dinosaur hand, and pressed a claw under Fiona's chin gently. "Such strong words coming from a weak girl like yourself." She said as she lightly scratched Fiona's chin in a mocking manner. "I suggest you be careful of who you try to threaten." She chuckled. Fiona jerked her head away and attempted to bite Oscura, but the raven-haired female was prepared. She reached out again with her dinosaur paw and gripped the red-haired teen's lower jaw tightly, her talons digging into her skin. As Fiona struggled in her vice grip, Oscura sneered. "I told you to be careful."

"Let her go!" Oscura heard Max say. Before she had time to react, she felt a fist against the side of her cheekbone. She squealed as she felt herself being knocked away, and ended up slamming her back against the wall of one of the buildings. Max turned his attention to Fiona. When he saw a little blood on her chin, he asked her gently, "Fiona...are you all right?"

"Yes." Fiona rubbed her chin lightly. Aside from a mild pain and a little blood, she felt fine. "I'm fine." Even though she was in human form, Oscura still appeared to be such a formidable opponent. She could only imagine who she would be in battle.

Max nodded before turning back to Oscura, who still had her back to the wall. "And as for you.." He said dangerously, stalking towards the girl like he was the predator and she was the prey. "Nobody threatens my friends, you hear me? Nobody..."

"Nobody except me." Oscura said, grinning broadly.

"Why you little...!" Max started to say before stopping himself.

"What? Big macho man afraid of a little bad word?" Oscura said in a teasing manner. She loved messing with people, especially when they seemed to show a sign of cowardice like this boy was displaying. Afraid of cursing? That's a good one!

Max felt his blood boil at that remark, but if he were to release his anger on Oscura now, they may never have a chance to find Caruso. Now that Oscura knows they are here, she could slip away and inform Veloci. They couldn't let her get away. She may be able to provide some useful information, but how to go about getting it from her? He and Fiona did easily outnumber Oscura, but the girl did have her Troodon spit. One bite and they were down. And Troodons were very agile, and could easily dodge most of their attacks. While their forms were larger, they were slower.

Then something else came to mind, something he had nearly forgotten about. Oscura was not alone. There was another person who had been with her the last time they had fought. Max hadn't seen Michelle anywhere, or any sign of her. He remained cautious when he took a step towards Oscura. He feared any second Michelle would turn up and turn the tides in this possible battle. But the combined tension of Oscura being here, Caruso still missing, and the possibility of an ambush from Michelle made it difficult for Max to suppress his anger for long.

"Oh shut up!" He snapped, trying his best to control his temper. "You're in no position to talk!"

Oscura eyed him casually, tilting her head as if she was confused by his statement. Is he really serious? She is in no position to talk? It took most of her will to keep herself from cracking up. The poor fool doesn't seem to acknowledge who's really in control here. Even as they stood there, staring at each other, she knew that the Dino Squad had already lost.

"You're such a fool..." She cooed mockingly as her hand shifted back to normal. She gave her hand a swift shake a couple times as she continued to speak. "You have no idea what kind of situation you and your other friends are currently in..."

Upon mentioning their other friends, Fiona took a step forward. Her eyes were narrowed, and she looked as if she was about to tear Oscura apart. She knew it probably wasn't the best strategy to take such an approach with this particular girl. After all, despite her small size, she could still beat them. Fiona had a hard time keeping her anger from rising however. She just couldn't forget what happened the last time they faced off with her and her deceptive partner, Michelle. Thoughts began to run through Fiona's mind. Why had Oscura brought up the others? If she did anything to hurt the others...!

"What about our other friends?" Fiona asked, clearly looking like she was struggling to restrain herself from lunging at Oscura. "What have you done to them?!"

Max joined in. "If you harmed them, I'll...!" He threatened, clenching his fists. He didn't know how long it would be before he just has to release his tension and use physical force on the girl. It may happen sooner than he thinks. He doubted Oscura would tell them what they needed to know right away, and she would most likely just continue teasing them. Why had he thought it was a good idea to get information from her anyway? There was little reason to think it was 'reliable'.

Oscura grinned menacingly as she pulled out what appeared to be a communication device. "Oh it's not me that they should worry about..." She said as she brought the device closer to her mouth. She pressed a button and gave a single command. "NOW!"

As soon as she uttered the command, she felt Max's hands grip her shirt and she was quickly lifted into the air. Max brought his face close to hers, looking directly into her eyes. "What have you done?!"

Oscura snarled as she looked at Max's hands gripping her. She couldn't believe the boy would be foolish enough to do that. How dare he! To show her displeasure, she transformed her head and neck into their Troodon forms. Glowing yellow eyes glaring deep into Max's own eyes, she opened her jaws, bacteria-infested saliva dripping along her fangs, and let out a rattlesnake-like sound. As Max's eyes widened, Oscura snapped her head forward, slamming her jaws shut just inches in front of his face. Startled, Max released her.

Oscura shifted back, and brushed off her shirt. "That is no way to treat a girl." She said as she straightened her top.

"You deserved it!" Fiona snapped, although there was a slight tinge of fear in her voice. She was scared for Max because he'd nearly been bitten. And she was worried about Buzz and Rodger. What did Oscura do?

Although clearly agitated by the presence of one of Victor's loyal followers, Max and Fiona had to be careful nonetheless. Their injuries still haven't healed all the way, and they could still feel pain. Fiona still had a cut on her nose where Oscura had bitten her and Max had a bite mark on his calf. The blood had already dried up and they weren't bleeding. Max was able to get a bandage wound around the leg to protect it from further infection while Fiona had a band aide. While it looked weird and she didn't like it, there was no other option.

"...what did I do?" Oscura taunted as she let her anger with Max fade away. "Why isn't it obvious...?" As she asked this, she smiled as Fiona and Max widened their eyes. They seemed to understand what she was talking about. The girl grinned. "Michelle will take care of them..." She said callously.

Michelle kept herself in the shadows as she watched the two boys nearby. She recognized them immediately. Rodger and Buzz, they were two members of the Dino Squad that she had met just the other day. She knew they would recognize her on the spot, in both human and dinosaur form. She grimaced a little. She felt a little uneasy about this whole plan. And she wondered, once again, what would happen to Caruso. She didn't know why she cared so much. Oscura was frustrated with her, and she understood that. But not even Michelle herself could explain this behavior.

Victor had called them over for a new mission. He had gotten word from Peter that the Dino Squad had found another tracking device, one that she had missed. She was scared Victor would do something, since he did not tolerate failure. But considering it was a good distance away from the lighthouse, he had let it slide. Since Victor knew the Dino Squad would surely come to Boston to find their friend, he had assigned them to intercept the group and catch them before they could succeed.

But when Michelle had asked Victor what he had planned for Caruso, he wouldn't say anything specific other than Caruso would submit to him. She grew a little suspicious on just what he was doing. And she was starting to have some more second thoughts. Was it really worth it? Was doing all this really going to do any good? She didn't want to defy Victor, as she knew what happened when people go against him. But she didn't know how much longer she could continue allowing whatever was happening to Caruso to occur. It was bothering her deeply that she wasn't sure what was going on. But when it comes to Victor, she could assume it was nothing good. Did Caruso really deserve this? He was simply a teenager and nothing more. He may have the form of a Stegosaurus, but by mind and heart, he was still just a teenager.

From her spot in the tree, she watched as Buzz and Rodger started to walk underneath it. They hadn't seen her, thank goodness. But when she receives the signal from Oscura, she would have to attack them. She felt reluctant to do this, but if she failed in her part, who knew what Victor would do to her? The least intimidating thing he could do was fire her. But he has heard threats of being devoured in the past. And several times, she has noticed men and women working for Victor just disappear without a trace. She'd never see them again, not even in another town. She gulped, suspecting she knew what happened to them.

She saw her communicator glow and held it up to her head. She was about to receive a transmission from Oscura. As the device was now next to her ear, she heard a voice utter the command she had been waiting to hear. As soon as Oscura had given the word, Michelle hesitated a second, tensing up as she watched the unsuspecting boys below. This was it. There was no turning back now. Preparing herself for a battle, she leaped out of the tree. She landed on her feet right in front of Buzz and Rodger.

The two teens were, at first, startled by this. They hadn't seen anyone up in the tree, and they didn't know they were being followed by anyone. About three seconds later, they recognized who this person was, and were immediately on their guard, preparing for a fight. The one least happy about this situation was Buzz. He still felt sick to his stomach that he had trusted Michelle, and had even defended her. And then she goes and does this to them! She was nothing more than a deceptive brat. The only thing positive about her that Buzz could think of was that she was at least less aggressive than Oscura.

"What are you doing here?!" Buzz asked, the first one of the three teens to speak up.

"What am I doing here?" Michelle asked innocently, doing her best to hide her fear. "Why..nothing, nothing at all."

"Don't lie to us!" Buzz shouted.

Rodger chimed in. "We know you are up to something!"

"You aren't going to fool us!" Buzz yelled.

Michelle chuckled at this. The boys were certainly smart, now weren't they? Smiling darkly, she did just as Oscura had with the other two teenagers. She began to circle Rodger and Buzz, almost like a vulture. As she smirked evilly at the boys, they returned the smile with a glare that looked fierce enough to kill. She was a little shaken, but remained calm. It was almost as if she wasn't even slightly fazed by that look.

Then Michelle said something that she immediately regretted. "I bet you two young boys are worried about your precious little friend, Caruso..." She stifled a gasp and put a hand over her mouth in shock. It was too late to take it back now. While Victor hadn't said anything about not doing this, Michelle knew it was a mistake to bring it up. As she looked to see the boys' reactions, she flinched a little, and took a step back. They had scowls plastered on their face, their teeth were gritted and showing, and their eyes were glowing yellow, a warning sign they were on the verge of transforming.

"What have you done to Caruso?!" Buzz demanded, raising his arm to punch Michelle.

Michelle took another step back, feeling her heart start to beat a little faster. "I did nothing to him!" She said quickly, trying desperately to shift the blame to keep herself from being accused. The only thing she had done to Caruso was plant the tracker onto his hand. She hadn't really hurt him. "I-It was Victor!" She said before she could stop. "He kept saying how he would force Caruso to surrender!" She immediately shut her mouth when she realized what she had just said. Oh why doesn't she just tell them everything already!

Realizing they could get a little information from this girl, Rodger took a step forward, trying to use his size to intimidate Michelle. "What else did he say...?" He asked dangerously, clearly indicating that if he felt she was lying, he was going to take action.

"...something about breaking his spirit..." Michelle replied nervously, looking up slightly as she was a tad shorter than Rodger.

For a brief second, the two boys tensed up. They recalled what Peter had told them earlier. The man had told them something about breaking Caruso's will if he continued to oppose Victor. But from what they were hearing now, it seemed Victor may have gone forth with that plan, to make the boy submit to his will. Both of them knew that Caruso did have a strong spirit that was hard to break. He would sometimes have brief anger problems like the time when he got upset with them because they disapproved of his bringing O'Ryan to the same place they were having a mission. But that only meant he had a strong mind, and was not the type to submit to another easily. This was definitely obvious on that mission.

Peter had mentioned Victor had a plan, a method that would either make Caruso surrender, or kill him. Just what did Victor have in mind? What could possibly make someone as hard-headed as Caruso surrender, or kill him in the process? Buzz and Rodger had all kind of disturbing thoughts running through their minds. They couldn't think of what could be worse: whatever Victor had in mind to break Caruso's will or the experiments he wanted to force the boy to endure.

But this girl could be their key in getting their friend back. If they used force, they could make her reveal his location, perhaps even make her lead them to him. And they couldn't shake off the feeling of anger and hatred they had for this girl. She helped lead Victor to the lighthouse. And she had helped capture Caruso in the first place. And to top it all off, she had nearly killed Rump and Moynihan, and destroyed all their monitoring equipment. She was the reason they are not able to get a lock on Caruso's location.

But of the two young teens, it was Buzz who was the most effected when the truth about Michelle was revealed. When he had first met her on that online computer game, he had thought he found someone whom he could try being friends with. When she first appeared in the classroom, he was the one most willing to help her fit in. He didn't suspect anything was wrong with her. She just seemed like everyone else. She had seemed like a friendly girl, someone whom he thought he could trust.

And when she pretended to be in danger, he and the others believed her, and had 'saved' her from the Troodon. They took her into the lighthouse, and had treated her wounds. She'd been bitten, and was getting sick from the poison in the saliva from the Troodon's bite. Even if her devious plan had not worked, she still was in real danger after Oscura had bitten her. She still owed them. They saved her life after all. Michelle hadn't shown any suspicious behaviors while in the lighthouse. She had made no attempt to wander around. She had stayed on the couch the entire time until she had to leave. Buzz had thought that, since Michelle didn't do anything they didn't want her to, she could be trusted. But he had made a terrible mistake.

It hurt him. It really hit him hard knowing that this girl, even though he didn't know her for long, had deceived them all. Everything she'd told them in the beginning was a lie. That whole thing with becoming a new classmate, that was probably just a charade to get into the class. Buzz narrowed his eyes as he continued thinking about Michelle. She probably just wanted to get into the class in order to get to know the Dino Squad more, perhaps learn their secrets. The more he thought about her, the angrier he became as he recalled all the times he had been betrayed by those he thought were friends. The very memories of these events made him start to shake visibly with anger.

Rodger had noticed this and turned away from Michelle to place his hand on Buzz's shoulder. He looked at his green-haired friend with a concerned look on his face. "Yo, are you all right?" He asked, nearly forgetting about the brunette standing nearby. "Why are you shaking?"

"I'd..." Buzz started to say before letting out a sigh. "I'd rather not talk about it right now." He said, briefly glancing a glare at Michelle, who took a step back.

Michelle gulped and felt her uneasiness grow and her courage diminish. She watched as the african-american tried his best to comfort his friend. She felt a tinge of jealousy. Why couldn't she and Oscura get along like that? Because Oscura was such a brat, that's why. Oh how Michelle was starting to hate her more and more everyday. And she was sure the feeling was mutual. She hoped the dominance fight would straighten her out, but since they were interrupted, Oscura declared there was no winner and continued to act as if she were her own boss. It sickened Michelle.

Michelle decided to take this moment between friends as a way for her to get out of here. But as she started to walk away, something was stopping her. A wave of fear came over her as she recalled what would happen to her if she disobeyed. Veloci had made it very clear to her he would hurt her if she did not carry out the task. He didn't sound threatening as he told her this. He probably believed she would listen to him anyway just as she always had in the past.

She groaned as she struggled to take another step, but her fears prevented her from getting any further. She felt a strange tingling in her fingers, a sick feeling in her stomach. It was like her fear had become her will, and was forcing her to carry out the mission. She took a glance behind her. The two boys still hadn't noticed she was starting to leave. She then turned and looked to where their bikes were, leaning against the side of a building. She'd seen these before, yesterday when they had taken her into the lighthouse to treat her wounds. They had taken her right into the lighthouse to treat her injuries because they thought she was genuinely in danger.

The young girl couldn't help but feel a little guilty as she remembered how she had tricked them like that. She had only been following orders though. She hadn't gone there on her own will. She hadn't destroyed the equipment because she wanted to. It was because she had to. They should understand that, right? They had a Velociraptor leading them. From what she had seen in her confrontation with the old woman, she quickly assumed that she was probably like Victor in some ways, perhaps just as aggressive, if not more. Surely the Dino Squad were subjected to the same kind of terror she herself has to go through everyday: the fear of getting eaten...

"Hey you!" Michelle winced as she heard Buzz's harsh voice calling from behind her. "Just where do you think you're going?!" She turned to see Buzz stalking towards her, his hands clenched into fists, and it looked as if he was shaking again. His brown eyes, narrowed dangerously, bore into her own as he stopped a couple feet away from her.

Michelle looked at Buzz fearfully before turning around to make a run for it, but she quickly found that she could not take that path. Rodger had gotten around the two and was now standing on the opposite of Michelle, attempting to box Michelle in and keep her from running away. Rodger folded up his arms tightly. "You are not leaving here." He told her. "If you want to escape, you will have to fight us first, but I'm warning you. It's not going to be much of a fight. Two big dinosaurs and one small dinosaur aren't exactly an even match."

Without thinking, a sly smile slowly appeared on Michelle's face. "You mean like the fight at the lighthouse?" She chuckled darkly. "Yeah you were so beating up Oscura and I!" She said in a taunting, sarcastic voice.

"Shut up!" Buzz snapped, his eyes glowing once more. But he knew that Michelle was right about this. They were sourly beaten by two human-sized dinosaurs back at the lighthouse. Five large dinosaurs, definitely bigger than these two dwarf dinosaurs, and they still didn't stand much of a chance against them. They were still beaten. The smaller forms were more agile than they were, and a lot quicker. Would he and Rodger really be able to defeat Michelle? She might be outnumbered, but only by one. Would they stand more of a chance if they had Fiona and Max with them?

Buzz wasn't the only one thinking about those two. Rodger suddenly realized that if Oscura and Michelle were partners, if Michelle was here, where was Oscura? There's only one logical place he could think of. The raven-haired teen must have gone after the other two to apprehend them! Rodger groaned. Splitting up wasn't such a great idea anymore. They have let themselves become more vulnerable by doing so. He began to worry about Max and Fiona. Were they all right? Has Oscura found them yet? And if she had, did she harm them?

"Oscura..." Rodger said. "She's after Max and Fiona, isn't she?"

Trying to sound brave once more, Michelle chortled and said in a mocking tone, "Oh you mean those two incompetent leaders?" She had heard that Max was the leader and Fiona was second-in-command, a co-leader sort-of-speak. "Oh yes she is. But I think she won't have much trouble. With the kind of luck those two idiots have, they won't last a few minutes against Oscura."

Michelle gagged a little as she felt someone yank her from behind. Her shirt collar pressed against her throat, making it a little difficult to breathe. She heard Buzz's harsh voice speak to her. "How dare you!" Buzz growled as he pulled on the collar tighter, attempting to strangle Michelle for what she said.

"Let...me...go...!" Michelle demanded as she yanked free of Buzz's grasp. She took in a few breaths and rubbed her throat a little to make sure there were no scratches there.

"What's the matter?" Buzz said somewhat mockingly. "I didn't know someone with a cold heart could feel anything!"

"Buzz..." Rodger said in a disapproving tone. He shared the same dislike for Michelle, but he knew that accusing her like this was not going to get them anywhere. And mocking her just as she mocked them, he didn't want to stoop to that level. "Don't. We aren't going to get anywhere with that kind of attitude."

Buzz growled softly at this statement. For a brief moment, he was wondering why Rodger was saying this. He felt that Rodger would have wanted to say something like that to Michelle, especially all that she's put them through. But slowly he realized the computer geek's point. To mock Michelle in the same manner as she had just mocked them would make them just as bad as she was. "I'm sorry." He said to Rodger after a few seconds of silence.

Rodger nodded before turning his attention on Michelle. He took in a deep breath and said, "I will ask this only once. Are you willing to just give us the information we need and be on your way unharmed... or do you want to fight?"

Michelle turned her head this way and that in a bird-like manner as she thought about the question. She would much rather just give the information if it meant getting away without having to fight. It was late and she was starting to get a little tired. She hadn't taken any kind of medicine to help her stay awake. She might not be able to perform at her best, and she suspected that these two boys would. They were going to be searching all night for their friend, so they probably did take sometime before they came here.

But she knew that if she returned to Oscura, or even Victor, without looking like she was in a fight, she would get into trouble. She knew that much. With Victor's sense of smell, he would be able to tell if she had made contact with this group or not. She couldn't lie about that. As much as she didn't want to right now, she would have to choose to fight. She had to follow Victor's orders. Was there really any other choice? Well there was, but she did not like the result of the other choices, to either betray him or to fail him. She didn't wish to have those claws and teeth in her...

"I choose to fight." She told them, closing her eyes and opening them up to reveal the reptilian eyes of a dinosaur. "I was sent here to capture you as Oscura was sent to capture your other two friends. We will take you to a confinement area where Victor will assess you after he is through with Caruso."

Giving an almost sadistic grin, a behavior that was so unlike himself, Buzz said, "Then you are going to be disappointed..." His eyes changed as well and he held up an arm, the hand now having hooked claws and green skin. "We won't let you win."

Both Rodger and Michelle seemed surprised at this new behavior coming from Buzz. Rodger hadn't seen that kind of smile from Buzz before, and it seemed a little scary for him to see the guy look like he's actually going to enjoy inflicting pain on someone, even if it was a follower of Victor. Michelle was a bit startled, but tried to look as unfazed as possible. She knew Buzz was trying to intimidate her. She wasn't going to let him or his friend scare her, although it was probably too late for this newfound bravery for she could still feel her heart racing.

Laughing with a somewhat evil disposition, attempting to slow down her heart rate and calm down her breathing, Michelle flexed her fingers in a dinosaur-like way and stared directly into Buzz's eyes. He was the one she was going to attack first, and she knew he knew that. "Well then..." She started to say. "I suggest you fight better than you did the last time, you flying bat."

A growl uttered from Buzz's voice as he responded threateningly, "You little..."

"Bring it." Michelle said as she watched Buzz seethe from the insult she'd just given him.

The alleyway had become a scene filled with blurs of reds, greens, and yellows. The air was mixed with the growls and hisses from three beasts that were clashing with each other. The sounds of slashes and claws clanging against each other also filled the night atmosphere. The trash cans had been knocked down, their contents strewn across the floor. At least one window was smashed, although no one had seemed to wake up to investigate. And the side of the walls were covered in long claw marks.

SSPLAAAARSHHH!

A cry of yelp followed as blood splattered against the wall of the alleyway. A large green Tyrannosaurus Rex, his mouth wide open and panting heavily, briefly lowered himself to the ground. Blood was trinkling down a wound on his thigh. Max didn't how how he let Oscura get close enough to do that. He should have been more focused. He mentally scolded himself as he lowered his head to lick the wound as best as he could.

'Max!' He looked up to see Fiona rushing towards him. 'Are you all right?' She lowered her head and sniffed at the wound he was cleaning with his tongue. The scent of blood mixed into her nostrils, and she jerked her head back. 'That's one nasty scratch.'

'No kidding...' Max grumbled before opening his mouth in horror. Fiona had turned her back onto Oscura. And now the Troodon was coming up behind her for a sneak attack! 'Fiona! Look out!' He shouted.

The golden Spinosaurus quickly turned her head to the side. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of a flash of crimson. And then a second later, a sharp pain enveloped her, originating from the neck. Oscura had latched onto her and was now digging her claws into her vulnerable neck! Fiona lifted her head up and let out a roar of pain as she stumbled across the floor, trying her best to knock the Troodon off of her. But there was so little room in this alleyway. Why had she and Max taken the risk of going dino here? They were lucky they didn't squash each other.

It was clear Oscura had the advantage. She was small enough to still be able to maneuver around even with two large dinosaurs taking up almost all the space in the alleyway. And she was so agile they couldn't get a claw or tooth on her, and yet she could easily inflict wounds on them. She has already cut up Max pretty well. In addition to the injury on his thigh, he had a few more on his back and side. Fiona had a few cuts on her face, forearms, and tail.

'Let go of me, you urchin!' Fiona shouted angrily, snapping towards Oscura. But the little dinosaur was just out of her ranch. All her jaws were snapping on was air, no matter how many times she tried.

Oscura chuckled at Fiona's pathetic attempt to get her off of her neck. 'Oh poor Fiona. What's the matter? You don't like a friendly hug?' She asked mockingly.

Fiona hissed. 'Wait until I get my jaws on you...'

'Oh I'd like to see you try...' Oscura replied sinisterly, opening her jaws to deliver a bite. '..before I deliver the bite, and then it'll be all over.' She saw Fiona's eyes widen and couldn't help but chuckle to herself. 'I went easy on you and your friends before. I only gave a mild dose that made you sick. But I can easily give you more, with deadlier consequences...'

'No!' Max rose up from the ground. 'Don't you dare do it, Troodon! If you do, I'll...' His voice trailed off as he struggled to find some sort of threat to give to the Troodon. But she seemed so unfazed by anything they tell her. He doubt he could find something to scare her with. She was probably not even afraid of threats of death.

'Or you'll what?' Oscura asked tauntingly. She lowered her head closer, her teeth just barely touching Fiona's dinosaur skin. Fiona had frozen in place, afraid that if she tried anything now, she could slip and feel the fangs sink into her body, delivering the cocktail of bacteria. 'Now doesn't this remind you of something, hmm?' She asked in a scary tone of voice, even for her. It would have scared her too if she even cared that much.

'What are you talking about?' Max asked.

Oscura let out a hissing laugh. 'You mean you don't remember? How could you have forgotten?'

Max narrowed his eyes angrily. 'If you're going to pull a mind game...!'

'Your friend here is helpless to defend herself from my bite.' Oscura explained, setting her jaws on Fiona's neck once more. 'And you are powerless to stop it. Isn't this the same situation that happened when we took your precious friend?' As Max let out a gasp, Oscura slightly tightened her grip on Fiona's neck. 'You were right there, and you could not save him. You let him down.'

'I...' Max attempted to defend himself, but only drew a blank. A sickening feeling overcame him as he realized that Oscura was correct. He had let Caruso down. He could have saved him, but he let himself be overtaken by the poison and collapsed, doing nothing more but watching the truck drive away and disappear from sight.

'Don't listen to her!' Max heard Fiona say. 'She's just trying to psyche you out! Don't let it get to you!'

'Quiet you!' Oscura hissed, pressing a little harder, the teeth nearly breaking the skin.

'Fiona!' Max moved his head a bit closer, but froze in place as he saw Oscura threatening to bite harder. He was close enough to attack, and yet he was being held back. Why? He had no restraints on. There was no rope tying him to a building of some kind. He probably could move fast enough to grab Oscura. Even if he didn't move quick enough, if he got his jaws on her, it was all over. So why was he hesitating?

'So..it looks like we understand each other.' Oscura slowly loosened her grip on Fiona's neck. But she still had her jaws set on the skin, making it very clear she wouldn't be afraid to pull that stunt again. And she wasn't through having her little fun. 'Perhaps I should just kill her now...'

'Why?!' Fiona's jaws gaped open in shock. She did not know why she asked that one word question. She already knew what the answer was going to be.

'Why...?' Oscura's eyes turned towards her. The golden glow nearly made the Spinosaurus flinch. 'Because it's fun.' She grinned. 'Your death scream will be music to my ears.'

Max roared in anger. He was getting tired of this darn Troodon! He could feel his blood become hot with hatred, feeling as though his skin were burning. His entire body was shaking with rage. Oscura had long since crossed the line. She had threatened Fiona and had tried to psyche him out by making him feel guilty all over again about Caruso's capture. She had poisoned his team mates, and probably taunted Caruso while he was being taken away. She was nothing but a monster who enjoyed seeing pain and suffering from others. How could anyone believe it is fun to take the life of another? Only those with a cold heart would think that.

But as much as Max wanted to attack Oscura, he just couldn't. Fear was holding him back, making him hesitate. That is what he started to believe. He feared that if he missed, he could hit Fiona instead. She was very close, Oscura was within range, but he could still easily miss. Oscura was not a very large dinosaur. He would have to be very precise with his bite, or he risked hurting Fiona. Max groaned in frustration. What should he do...?

Suddenly, without warning, a loud shriek emitted from Oscura's throat. A second later, she was tossed to the ground, stumbling as she rolled across the floor. Fiona and Max were completely taken off by this. Just what had happened? They hadn't seen anyone else show up. They couldn't see any of the others around them. And it wouldn't have made much sense, considering the fact that they took up most of the room in the alleyway. There did not appear to be enough room for anyone else to show up. And yet that was exactly what happened. How else could they explain the sudden attack that knocked the red Troodon off of Fiona?

A deep cut snaked across Oscura's back, not deep enough to kill but allowed the blood to flow freely. She struggled to her feet, moaning briefly in pain and from disorientation. Just who attacked her? She took a good look at the wound on her back, near where her tail began. This wound did not seem like it could have been inflicted by a Tyrannosaurus Rex or Spinosaurus. Her eyes widened a little. This kind of wound could only have been inflicted by Victor, or...

'Moynihan?!' Max and Fiona said in unison, their voice clearly filled with shock. Standing there, across from where Oscura was, was Moynihan. She was in her Velociraptor form, her yellow eyes glaring angrily at the Troodon.

'You...' Oscura seethed. 'How dare you...' Drool dripped from the sides of her jaws in a beast-like manner.

'You brought this on yourself.' Moynihan replied, raising up her claws threateningly. It had been a long time since she last fought in Velociraptor form. She hoped that she hadn't gotten too rusty on her fighting skills. Max and Fiona detransformed back into their human forms to give their mentor some fighting room. They also backed away so they wouldn't be caught in the middle of the battle.

'You are going to try to face me alone?' Oscura sneered, raising her head up with self confidence. 'You're a bigger fool than I thought. An old woman who is clearly passed her fighting prime facing a younger, more skilled fighter all by herself.' While Moynihan felt a little insulted that Oscura judged her fighting skills so negatively even after she had managed to land a serious wound on her back, she couldn't help but give a raptor-like smile to the Troodon. Oscura was confused by this grin. 'What are you smiling about?'

Moynihan chuckled in a dinosaurian manner. 'You. Did you really think I came here all by myself?'

'What are you...' Oscura suddenly screamed as she felt something clamp onto her tail. She turned her head to see something white gripping on her tail, and growled as she recognized what it was. 'You stupid mutant dog!' She cried out. 'Let me go!' Michelle had told her about Rump, how the dog tried to attack her but she managed to wound him. At first Oscura laughed at the idea of a dog turning into some mutant half dinosaur half dog creature, and found it even funnier when Michelle offered her a detailed description. But now, with Rump biting her with those powerful jaws, she is finding the mutant to be far less funny.

"Rump?!" Fiona gasped. What was the dog doing here? He still hadn't fully recovered from Michelle's assault. She could still see the bandages that were wrapped around him. And yet, despite the pain he must be in, he was attacking Oscura without hesitation. It was as if the pain he was feeling didn't mean anything to him anymore.

"Why is Rump here?" Max asked, just as confused as Fiona.

'What?' Moynihan asked, briefly glancing over her shoulder to look at the two teens. 'You didn't expect me to come alone, did you?' She sounded a bit surprised, as if she expected them to know she would not come here alone. But then again, they didn't know she was coming at all.

"Well..." Max started, but was interrupted by a high pitched yelp.

ARRROOOOO!

'RUMP!' Moynihan cried as she watched the dog slamming into the ground after getting hit by Oscura's tail. Rump managed to struggle to his feet. He wobbled a bit as he took a couple steps forward, but other than a bit of redness appearing where he was struck, he didn't appear to have any new injuries on him.

'You stupid mutt..' Oscura snarled as she glared at the dog mutant. She glanced back at her tail, now having some blood covering it, and said, 'I should skin you alive for that!'

'You will do no such thing!' Moynihan got into a fighting position, rosing her tail straight in the air and lowering herself, jaws wide open, claws held forward menacingly. She was challenging Oscura to a one-on-one fight.

'Hahahaha! You really think you can take me on, you old woman?' Oscura sneered confidently. She was having trouble comprehending what would possess an elder to take on a youth. 'You don't stand a chance.'

Moynihan growled softly. 'Don't act so smart, you idiot!' Hearing Moynihan say this surprised both Max and Fiona. Rump sensed what was about to happen and limped towards Fiona, detransformed, who knelt down and picked him up. 'Take a good look at your opponent before talking like such a fool!' To emphasize her words, she slowly rose straight up, her tail still raised, her jaws still open, and she let out a soft, warning growl.

'I'm not the fool.' Oscura simply said, unaffected by Moynihan's threatening growl. 'You are, you thick-headed, pathetic excuse for a Velociraptor!' She shouted at the green raptor, not once hesitating as she continued to insult her. 'I could easily defeat you, you old hag! So why don't you do yourself a favor and just give up before we even begin? Trust me, it'll be a lot less painful.'

Moynihan's sharp teeth glinted in the little light available as she seethed a bit at the insult. Usually she wouldn't let such insults get to her. But the way Oscura was saying them was reminding her all too well of Victor Veloci, the way he had started to treat her ever since she expressed doubts of reclaiming the planet for the dinosaurs. She did understand, somewhat, why he had gotten upset. She had usually been there for him to support him and to help him. It probably helped him feel better knowing that there was another one just like him who had shared his dream. It must have hurt him when she went against him, and abandoned him. She had considered changing her mind, but when Veloci attacked her for the first time...well that hurt her just as much.

Why had he attacked her with such ferocity not long after she decided to quit? She hadn't even planned on trying to stop him in the beginning. She didn't think she could anyway. She had never threatened him when she first left. She just simply couldn't take it anymore. All these experimentations, they were wearing her down. There had been too many broken promises and too many let downs. But when Victor attacked her in an attempt to force her to rejoin him, she had no choice but to defend herself. Victor was not always like this. She secretly wished for the Victor she once knew to return, but she believed that had long since passed.

She'd given him chance after chance after chance, but he never changed. She wasn't sure if that was because he didn't understand, or if he just simply didn't want to change back to how he was before. Victor didn't always hate the humans. There was a time when he, like her, was curious about them and wanted to learn more. What she found funny, in a bitter way, is that it was actually the result of one incident that led Victor to his long-standing hatred of the primates. And she had never told the Dino Squad.

But Moynihan knew that this was not the time or place to be thinking such thoughts, especially when there was an enemy standing before her, ready to strike. She mentally shook her head to get those thoughts out of her mind and said, 'I do not need to take orders from you.'

'Such a lame response.' Oscura sneered, chuckling to herself. 'I would have expected more from the trainer of the Dino Squad. But then, why was I expecting that from such a weak person like yourself?'

"Why you..." Max started, but was held back by Fiona. "Fiona, let go!"

"No!" Fiona hissed. "Professor Moynihan can take care of herself! We have to find the others!"

"Fiona..." Max began.

Fiona was not in the mood to argue. "Max, what if Michelle gets the others?"

Max still was not agreeing to going along with Fiona's request of leaving Moynihan to find Buzz and Rodger. It's not that he didn't care about their safety. It's just that..Oscura had a more dangerous bite than Michelle did. What if something happened to Moynihan? "I'm sorry, Fiona, but I still don't think we should just leave Moynihan."

This hadn't gone unnoticed by the opposing villainess. Raising her long, slender neck upwards a bit and opening up her mouth slightly to partially expose her teeth, Oscura was becoming even more amused by these two teenagers. Their loyalty to their loved ones, it amused Oscura, as she saw this as a sign of weakness. And it seems she was right, with the way these two were bickering a bit on who they should help first. 'You Dino Squad idiots never cease to amaze me.' She jeered.

"You stay out of this!" Fiona barked. "This doesn't concern you!"

Giving a laugh that sounded more like a rattlesnake hiss than an actual laugh, Oscura turned her head to the side. She gazed at the feisty tomboy at a sideways glance. 'On the contrary, my dear,' She said evilly. 'I believe it does. You want to find your other friends? You'd have to get through me first.' She held out her red-skinned arms, the hooked claws on both hands facing towards each other.

"We're not afraid of you!" Max declared. He then felt someone pulling him back. Even though he couldn't see her face, he knew it was Fiona. "Fiona, stop!"

"But Max..." Fiona started to say. Before either of them could continue, they noticed Moynihan shifting her raptor head towards them, her yellow eyes gleaming at them. It reminded them so much of Victor they almost forgot that Joanne was on their side. Instinctively, they both took a step back.

'Fiona is right.' Moynihan finally said. She tried her best not to focus too much on the children, unless she wants to let her guard down and risk getting attacked by Oscura. Before Max could try to argue with her, the green Velociraptor made her point clear. 'I can handle this Troodon on my own. Two small dinosaurs would be harder to notice.'

"I..." But Max couldn't think of anything to say. Moynihan was right. He was surprised that no one had heard them fighting. He was a T-Rex and she was a Spinosaurus. They aren't exactly hard to miss, given their huge size. "I understand."

'You and Fiona must go find the others and make sure they are all right.' Moynihan said as she turned her head to face Oscura. 'I will join up with you after I take care of this Troodon.'

"Come on." Fiona said after Moynihan had given the order. She started to race towards her Spino-Cycle. "Let's go!" She quickly hopped on, and waited for Max. She didn't want to take off and having him not knowing where she was. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Rump changing back into his mutant form. He jumped onto her lap and held onto her with his strong mutant paws.

"Coming!" Max raced towards his Tyranno-Cycle, and was about to hop on. But he hesitated briefly. He turned his head towards Moynihan, who was now facing off with the red Troodon. "Good luck." He whispered before getting on his bike. He nodded to Fiona, and they soon took off to the other side of town, leaving Moynihan alone with Oscura.

When they were alone, the two dinosaurs began to circle around each other in the alleyway, eyes locked onto one another. Both were calculating the strength of their opposition, and figuring out, mentally, what they should do to defeat the other. Neither made a move, however, expecting the other one to do so. They both remained on alert, awaiting for the first strike to be executed. The dark clouds in the sky shielded the moon, reducing the amount of light available in the alleyway. Moynihan narrowed her eyes, realizing she was at a slight disadvantage. She hadn't used her raptor night vision in years, and she was having some problems adjusting her eyes to the darkness.

Oscura, on the other hand, was unaffected. The Troodons were a race of mostly nocturnal dinosaurs with large eyes well designed for lack of light. She noticed Moynihan's temporary vulnerability, and considered attacking her. But she reconsidered, and decided not to. She had her reasons. She wanted to fight Joanne first. She wanted to defeat her, to crush her hopes and her spirit. Oscura felt it would be a lot more fun this way. She could already envision Moynihan's dying scream and her cold laughter. It would be music to her ears.

'You are quite brave, I'll give you that.' Oscura said as she scratched the ground with her talons as if she were about to charge. 'And for the record, my name isn't Troodon. It's Oscura.'

'I never asked you.' Moynihan hissed. 'So are you just going to stand there all day or are we going to fight? Or are you too afraid?'

'Ooo.. touchy touchy. I will give you this warning only once. You better watch what you say, old woman.' Oscura chuckled. 'You just might get hurt.'

Moynihan bared her teeth. 'Thanks for the warning.' She said in a sarcastic tone. 'But I can take care of myself, as Fiona said.' She knew that Oscura was probably going to try to psyche her out somehow.

'Oh so that's what her name is.' Oscura cooed as she smiled darkly with her dinosaurian jaws and lips. 'I admit she is a cute kid. And rather feisty and brave too.' She scratched her jaws as she said this. She was deliberately trying to make Moynihan angry to hinder her thinking skills during the fight. She had a feeling that the old woman would not appreciate having her students taunted and threatened. 'But she is still a rather weak individual. She could not even break free of my grasp. Her grabbing me back at the lighthouse was a simple fluke.' She scoffed. 'I have fun toying with people like her. Their resistance is amusing, and it's entertaining to make them suffer.' Oscura stopped briefly to glance at Moynihan more carefully. She felt a little disappointed that Moynihan was not reacting to what she was saying, and hissed softly to express her frustration.

'What's the matter?' Moynihan said, feeling a sense of satisfaction that she wasn't doing what Oscura was hoping she would do. Oh Oscura's words had angered her, but Moynihan knew that if she reacted, that would be just what Oscura was waiting for. She could see through Oscura's clever plan. And she wasn't going to fall for it. 'You can't win a fight without putting your opponents at a disadvantage? Are you that pathetic, Oscura?'

The Troodon snapped her head up and let out a loud hiss as her dinosaur lips curled back into a snarl. She didn't give an answer. Instead, she suddenly bolted forward, readying herself to lung at the green raptor and attack her. She had given Moynihan no warning, no sign that she was on the verge of attacking. She just bolted, and within seconds she was in range. When she was, she jumped and opened up her jaws to try to bite her. While she had a short amount of time to react. Joanne quickly jolted out of the way, allowing Oscura to bite the air.

As the Troodon slammed into the ground, Joanne quickly turned around and made her move. She lunged towards the smaller dinosaur and landed on her back before Oscura could get back up off the ground. Moynihan held Oscura on the ground with one strong leg, the foot pressed on the Troodon's long slender neck just behind the head. Oscura started to struggle frantically, but was having a difficult time swiping at Ms. Moynihan because of the way she was positioned on the ground and where Moynihan was standing. Oscura couldn't bite her either because she was not able to turn her head with the raptor's foot on her.

'How are you able to fight?' Oscura said as she finally started to settle down, realizing she wouldn't be able to free herself just yet. She decided she could not afford wasting too much energy. 'I thought you were hurt.'

Moynihan narrowed her yellow eyes. She knew someone was going to ask her about that, but she thought it would be one of her own students. She did not expect someone like Oscura to question her about it. 'That is none of your business, Troodon.' She hissed, pressing her foot slightly harder. 'Now are you going to tell me where Caruso is, or am I going to have to force the information from you?'

Oscura's eyes widened slightly, but not at Moynihan's foot applying more pressure. From what Victor had told her about Moynihan, the old woman was a coward, and nothing more. She wouldn't have the guts to threaten anyone. But now, she had just said something that sounded very close to an actual threat. Moynihan seems willing to actually hurt her to get information. This doesn't sound like the Moynihan she had been told about. Certainly not the Moynihan Victor knew either. What has gotten in this old woman?

'I never thought a coward like you would threaten to hurt anyone.' Oscura said.

'I never said I was going to hurt you.' Moynihan said, smiling although Oscura could tell it was not a genuinely happy smile. 'I have another way of getting information from you.' Moynihan was not really surprised that Oscura thought she was going to hurt her for information. She probably got that idea from Victor. No doubt he would do such a thing. She didn't put it past him. But Moynihan had another idea of how to get information from this feisty Troodon. And she wouldn't have to harm a scale on Oscura's body.

'And that is...?' Oscura inquired. But she got no reply from Moynihan, just an almost creepy smile.

"Rodger and Buzz have to be around here somewhere!" Fiona shouted, trying her bed to hold Rump with one arm and steer with the other. They were on the same road that Paramount Theatre was on, but so far they had seen no signs of Buzz or Rodger anywhere. She and Max knew that the two were assigned to look for clues around this spot, so they probably went to look somewhere else. But where exactly should they start looking? And they weren't gone that long, where they? Unless the two went dino, they couldn't have gotten that far.

"Keep looking!" Max responded, gripping the handles on his bike tightly as he looked around the block nervously. If Buzz and Rodger had gone dino out in the open, they would have a higher chance of getting spotted then he and Fiona did back in the alleyway. He was expecting a Pteranodon or a Styracosaurus to appear out of nowhere any second.

They continued their search, staying on the sidewalk along the same road. Eventually they could see the huge Paramount Theatre's sign. As it came closer to their view, not surprisingly, they couldn't see Buzz or Rodger anywhere. Now that they were at the location, they could start their search on foot. In case Michelle was anywhere nearby, they would be better off without the bikes. They'd make less noise that way. They hopped off their bikes and leaned them against a building close to the Paramount Theatre. As they did so, they quickly spotted two other strange-looking bikes. Upon inspecting them, they discovered they were Rodger and Buzz's motorcycles.

"Their motorcycles." Max said softly, turning his head to Fiona. "They must be close by."

"Yes." Fiona said, nodding her head. "But where?"

As if to answer their question, there was a loud crashing sound followed by a bellow of pain. Fiona and Max quickly turned in the direction of the sound and noticed smoke pillowing out from another alleyway, slightly larger than the one they were in. They nodded to each other and raced towards the space between the two large buildings. When they came to it, it became obvious, very fast, that the smoke was actually coming from behind the building. They raced through the thick smoke, covering their mouths and coughing as they attempted to wave the smoke away and get fresh air.

Once they reached the other side, they quickly noticed what caused the dusty smoke to begin with. On the back of Paramount Theatre, there was a large dent in it, the brick wall all around cracking and breaking. Inside the partial hole in the thick wall was a large green body, Buzz in dino mode. He had bite marks in his leg, and his head looked as though it were embedded in the dent in the building. Standing in front of him was Michelle in dino mode. Her mouth was lined with a little bit of blood, and she was making her way towards Buzz.

Not too far away, there was Rodger. He was laying down on his side. There appeared to be some kind of large beam laying on him, heavy enough to hold him down, but not kill him. He had a few cuts on his face and along his back, probably where Michelle attacked him, just as Victor had. The Styracosaurus saw Fiona and Max arrive on the scene and tried to get up. He let out a moan of pain as his feet slipped from underneath him and he hit the ground with a thud.

Max and Fiona stood there, horrified. Michelle hadn't spotted them yet, but they knew that wouldn't last much longer. They stood there, frozen, staring at the scene before them. How could Michelle so easily take down both Rodger and Buzz in dino mode? Well sure, Michelle was also in dino mode. But she wasn't very big, smaller than Moynihan and Victor were in dino mode. And she lacked the venomous bite that Oscura had. Rodger and Buzz should have had the advantage. Apprehending Michelle shouldn't have been too difficult. And yet, there they were, helpless as Michelle made her advancements. Max and Fiona ran in different directions. Max went towards Rodger while Fiona went towards Michelle.

"Rodger!" Max shouted as he transformed into his Tyrannosaurus Rex form. He stomped towards his injured comrade and lowered his head down. He gripped the beam with his strong jaws and lifted it up into the air. With a single thrust, he tossed it towards nearby foliage, followed by a loud crashing sound. He winced briefly, and then turned his head towards Rodger. He lowered his head once again. 'Rodger, are you all right?'

'I'll be..fine..' Rodger managed to say through his pain. Although shaky and a little weak, he managed to get to his feet since he no longer head the heavy beam pushing him down.

'How could someone that small beat you and Buzz?' Max said, sounding confused. 'You and him are bigger than she is.'

'She..she was too fast for us.' Rodger explained. 'She wore us out...'

"Leave him alone!" Fiona shouted to Michelle, getting her attention as she ran towards her.

The Guanlong Wucaii stopped in her tracks, only a few feet away from Buzz, and turned her head towards Fiona. The tomboy had stopped running, and stood about a yard or so away from Michelle. The black dinosaur remained unfazed as the girl stared at her hatefully. Michelle turned her entire body in the direction where Fiona was standing. She found it a little amusing that she was going to attempt to defend her friend. What chance would she have anyway? If these two couldn't defeat her, what made her think she could?

But perhaps she should just humor the girl, let her try to fight her. Why not? It wouldn't hurt anything, well except maybe her or Fiona. It wouldn't necessarily be a waste of time. And since she's fighting the Dino Squad, she couldn't get in trouble with Victor, even if she failed in the mission, now could she? Of course she could easily be wrong. She felt a tinge of fear as she quickly thought of what the consequences would be if she were wrong. She shook her head mentally. She couldn't think those things at this moment. If she spaced out too long, Fiona could use that to her advantage and attack her without warning.

Clenching a fist, Fiona pointed to where Buzz was laying. He was unconscious, his eyes closed and mouth open with his tongue hanging out. "What did you do to him?!" Fiona demanded.

Michelle tilted her head in a bird-like manner as she thought about an answer to give the tomboy. She casted a glance at Buzz before she turned her head towards the girl. She opened her mouth in a dinosaurian smile. 'Oh why nothing...' She said slyly. '...that he didn't deserve.'

"What right did you have to do that to him?!" Fiona shouted, her eyes glowing yellow.

Unlike Oscura, Michelle did look genuinely afraid upon seeing the eye glow. She took a step back and did not give a smart retort like Oscura would have. She was growing more and more nervous the longer that Fiona and Max were there. It was tough enough for her to handle these two idiots. It would be nearly impossible for her to handle four dinosaurs, even if two of them were already injured. Michelle couldn't come up with a response for Fiona's question. She just stared at the girl in the eyes, hesitating, unmoving. Michelle was finally jolted into moving when she heard a roar from behind her. She could see the looming form of the Tyrannosaurus Rex, the leader of this group, that she knew. Next to him was the Styracosaurus. He still limped, but judging from how he was lowering his horns at her, he seemed more than ready to charge her.

Michelle then heard a squawking sound, and whirled her head around to find that Buzz had not only woken up, but was now standing, although with some difficulty with his injuries. He opened up his wing span as wide as he could and puffed up his chest to make himself look more intimidating. His long beak was open, exposing his sharp teeth. Michelle took a step back, and almost immediately she heard the deafening roar of the Tyrannosaurus Rex. Gulping silently, she turned yet again and quickly found she was surrounded by four larger dinosaurs. She scanned the area quickly, looking at each of her opponents. She growled softly. She couldn't fight all four of them by herself. She needed Oscura.

A thought crossed her mind. Just where was that Troodon? She was supposed to take care of Max and Fiona, yet they are here and she is not. What had happened back there? What was her partner up to? She glared softly at the T-Rex and Spinosaurus. There was only one thing that could have happened. Oscura must have been defeated, or perhaps even preoccupied with something else. Maybe the Dino Squad had brought back up. If that is the case, then capturing them was going to be harder than she had anticipated. Michelle felt a strange and uncomfortable feeling overwhelm her as she quickly realized she was subdued. She could not fight back, not against all these dinosaurs. She had no choice but to run.

Run...that was one choice she was not overly fond of. Oscura also hated running, but that was because she'd rather have fun with her opponents. Michelle hated to run because she believed it made her look like a coward. But even Victor had once said that sometimes running is the only option. Michelle took another step back, followed by a challenging bellow emitted from Rodger. She jumped a bit, startled, and stared in his direction, and then shifted her gaze to Max and Fiona, and then Buzz. Each one took a step closer to her, attempting to trap her in a circle. If Michelle were to escape, she'd have to run very soon.

Her thoughts returned to Caruso back at the hideout. She started to wonder how he was doing and what Victor was doing with him. At first, she didn't know why she was concerned about him. To her, all he was to her was the enemy. He was part of the Dino Squad and a threat to Victor's plan. If she helped him, she would be regarded as a traitor and perhaps Victor would kill her as the ultimate punishment. Victor was never tolerant of traitors as she learned the hard way in the past.

And Caruso did deserve this, did he not? His massive ego reminded herself, as well as Victor and Oscura, all too well of the ego that the human race had displayed over the past few hundreds of years. Caruso had believed he could use his dinosaur form for fame, from what she was told from when she was guarding Caruso on the way to Raptor Dyne. He didn't seem to know his own limitations and probably had endangered his group so many times. Perhaps taking him away was doing them a huge favor. They would be a lot safer without him.

And yet..why are they here? If they truly were better off without Caruso, why were they trying so hard to save him? Because they were friends, that's why, she thought. His friends must care about him a lot to risk everything to try to save him from her boss's clutches. Even if she was able to stop them this time, they would keep trying until either they died, succeeded, or they found out Caruso died.

Upon thinking of death, Michelle suddenly had a pang of guilt. Could she really go through with it? Could she really just let Caruso die? Victor had never mentioned anything about killing, but she wouldn't put it past him. And whatever method he was using to try to break Caruso..it would have to be something terrible, almost inhumane. Could she really just stand by and allow that to happen? No! She shouldn't think that like! Caruso was none of her concern! She shouldn't care at all what happens to him. Her main priority was to help capture the remainder of his stupid friends. They had it coming! They asked for it!

But she still couldn't help but feel guilty. Perhaps Oscura was right. Perhaps she had gotten attached to Caruso. It was the only explanation. She kept on telling herself otherwise, kept on emphasizing her hatred for him. But deep down, she did truly care about him and his well-being. She couldn't lie to herself any longer. She couldn't stand doing this anymore. She should never have gone along with doing all this. She should have refused to put the tracker on the poor kid. But because of her, now he's in her boss's hands and who knows what he was doing to him.

Was a paycheck really worth all this...?

Getting tired of the silence, Fiona spoke up. 'Well? Aren't you going to answer me?' Her mouth opened up to reveal her line of sharp teeth. 'Or are you thinking of another plan?'

'Let's just get her!' Buzz said, hissing loudly through his long beak. He was eager to get back at Michelle for slamming him into the wall like that. And he felt a tinge of satisfaction knowing that now she was outnumbered and couldn't fight back. Now she knows what it feels like to be helpless.

'No!' Max snorted, giving Buzz a T-Rex glare. 'We need information from her!'

'She isn't as cocky as Oscura. Getting information from her would probably be easier.' Fiona explained.

'You can't trust her!' Rodger shouted, angrily pointing his horns towards Michelle, indicating he wanted to run her through. Michelle reacted by jumping back and lowering her head in fear.

Buzz chimed in. 'Yeah! She'll just lie to us and send us into a trap!'

'But what choice do we have?' Max asked calmly, trying to settle down the Styracosaurus and Pteranodon before they frightened away the only source in finding their friend, Caruso. 'If we chase her away, how will we find Caruso?'

'Max is right, you two.' Fiona explained. Although she would love to get Michelle for what she's done, she knew that if they did that, they may never see Caruso again. 'Even if Michelle lies to us, isn't any information better than none? Don't you guys want to save Caruso?'

'Yes..but..' Rodger started.

'No buts, Rodger.' Fiona interrupted him. 'This may be our last chance.'

'Fiona is right you guys.' Max said. He turned his head towards Michelle. The smaller dinosaur seemed to be trying to find a way out. He narrowed his eyes. He couldn't let that happen, not when they were so close to finding out the exact location of their missing comrade. He took it upon himself to do the questioning. He would be the most willing to listen to her, and perhaps the most tolerant as well. He wouldn't dare let Buzz or Rodger do the questioning. They would rather attack her first and ask questions later. Fiona was a little better, but she probably wouldn't be able to tolerant Michelle for too long. So he knew it was up to him.

He moved forward as he saw Michelle running for an opening. He lowered his massive head down right in her way. Screeching in shock, Michelle scrambled to stop herself from slamming against the large animal's head. Michelle turned around and bolted towards another opening, one smaller than the previous one. Growling softly, Max quickly moved in her way yet again, blocking her path. Snorting in frustration, Michelle turned and tried for yet another opening. But it ended up the same as before. The large green T-Rex got in her way, preventing her from leaving. She backed up a little in fear.

'I just want to ask you a few questions.' Max explained calmly, hoping that the softness of his voice would settle the Guanlong Wucaii long enough to get some answers out of her. 'Why don't you just make it easier on yourself and answer them?'

'I'm not allowed to tell you anything!' Michelle shouted quickly. The tone of her voice revealed to Max that she didn't seem too happy about having to keep secrets from them. This surprised him a bit. Why would she feel unwilling to hide things from her enemy? But he shrugged it off.

'Do you really want to make this harder on yourself?' Max questioned. 'Tell you what, we'll let you go if you tell us where Caruso is.' He attempted to negotiate with the small black dinosaur, hoping that his offer would make her feel more comfortable in answering.

'I won't tell you anything!' Michelle said defiantly.

'I'll make you answer.' Rodger said as he started to charge towards her. He was abruptly stopped by a roar from Max and the snapping of his jaws so close to him.

'Stop!' Max shouted angrily. Rodger's eyes widened. He had never seen Max fake an attack like that against one of his own friends. While he felt disappointed and a little angry with their leader, he had to back down. He backed up a little, head lowered a little still. Max turned his head back towards Michelle. But before he could get a word out, he realized something was wrong. She was gone! 'She took off!' He shouted, eyes wide. He turned his head back towards Rodger. 'Thanks a lot, Rodger! You created a distraction for her to escape! And we were this close in getting information from her!'

'Don't be so hard on him.' Fiona said, trying to calm their leader down. 'He was only trying to...'

'I see her!' Buzz shouted, hovering above them. With his keen eyesight, he spotted Michelle, still in dino mode, racing off along the streets of Boston, staying mostly in the alleyways. 'She's running over there!'

'Then what are we waiting for?' Rodger said, forgetting about his anger towards Max. 'Let's get her!' Without hesitation, the four dinosaurs took off after Michelle. They knew they had to catch up to her. Maybe she was running back towards the hideout, where Caruso was. As they raced after the Guanlong Wucaii, one thought remained in their minds: Would they get there in time?

"Aaaaahhh!" Caruso slammed against the wall, a series of small yellowish sparks pulsing across his body, giving him a slight glow for several seconds. He managed to keep on his feet despite the pain and the spasms he was experiencing. He managed to open up his eyes just a crack to stare at the man standing before him. Victor stared back at him with a face of stone. In his hands he held some kind of weapon. Just like the others before it, the weapon had a dinosaur-like look to it. In his other hand he held the rope that was attached to the bridle Caruso was still wearing.

"Come over here." Victor demanded calmly, narrowing his eyes slightly.

Caruso glared at Victor, but obliged, although reluctantly, and began to, very slowly, walk towards the man-in-disguise. This was the fifth experiment he had to endure, or maybe it was the sixth. He had lost count. It was hard to really concentrate on how many times he endured an experiment due to the excruciating pain he had to suffer through. They've been all weapon-based experiments. Victor had told him he'd only shoot him once with each weapon he wanted to test, that all he wanted to do was see what kind of damage they'd do. He had assured the boy that none of the weapons would kill him. While, so far, Caruso only suffered minor injuries and short-lived intense pain, he didn't really trust Victor's word and believed that the next weapon would do far more serious damage.

So far, Caruso didn't have to endure any experiments involving one or more of Victor's mutants. But Victor had mentioned that he wanted Caruso to fight at least one of his mutants before the sun would rise over the horizon. When Caruso asked him why, Victor told him it was because he wanted to find the weaknesses in his mutants, but he didn't really explain to Caruso why, although the boy had a hunch why Victor would be interested in the weaknesses that his mutants exhibited instead of their strengths. It didn't take Caruso long to realize that Victor was looking to improve his mutants so they could be used to apprehend his other friends. Silently he wished he could do something to sabotage that experiment, but from within this room, he could do nothing, nothing except try to attack Victor when he was given a chance.

He had decided to switch back into human form after the second weapon test, despite Victor's warning that doing so would only make the pain around his head even worse. Caruso had never explained to Victor why he decided to change back, nor did he listen to Victor's commands, telling him to change back into Stegosaurus form. Victor was tempted to punish Caruso for not listening to him, but he declined, thinking the increased pain would be punishment enough. He thought that, eventually, Caruso would have had enough and change back into dino mode. But about four or so experiments later, Caruso still didn't change back. Victor was somewhat impressed with Caruso's tolerance of the bridle, but had begun to worry a bit.

What if Caruso became too tolerant of the bridle? If Caruso became too resistant to the pain from the bridle, Victor could eventually lose the ability to control him. He narrowed his eyes. He'd have to do something about that. But at the same time he would have to be careful. He didn't want to kill him, at least not yet. He had contemplated about possibly having to finish the boy off if he found a reason to. But maybe he would be able to get done with the experiments and, in the end, being able to let the boy live. He narrowed his eyes further as he thought of this. He believed the only way to, in the end, allow the boy to live without him putting his plans in danger was to get the boy to join him. He stifled a laugh. From what he's seen of the teenager, Caruso would probably rather die than join him.

"W-What do... you want...?" Caruso managed to say, being very careful as he spoke with the bit in his mouth. He could still taste the weird and uncomfortable mix of the metal of the bit and the blood that was continuing to seep from cuts on his tongue, gums, and the roof of his mouth. He gingerly lifted his tongue to lick one of the cuts that was right behind his top incisor teeth, but immediately winced in pain because the motion had caused the bit's spikes to scrape across the top of his tongue.

"Aren't you tired of feeling extra pain yet, hairless monkey?" Victor asked in a tone that was a mixture of surprise and confusion.

Caruso narrowed his eyes and said carefully, "No...I..am fine."

Victor chuckled softly in a way that let Caruso know that he didn't fully believe his statement. Victor motioned his hand towards Caruso, towards his bridle. The boy stifled a shudder as he felt Victor's pointer finger stroked along one of the spiked bands that made up the bridle and stopped at the edge of the bit sticking out of Caruso's mouth. "Are you sure?" He asked softly. "That bit has dug in pretty deep."

Caruso knew Victor was right. The jagged bit had cut in deeply at both corners of his mouth. And he knew the longer he wore the bridle in human form, the further the bit might go. But he didn't want to give into Victor. Growling softly, he swatted Victor's hand away and took a step back. "Leave me alone, scaly freak!"

Victor's eyes glowed and he gave a quick pull on the rope. "What did you say?!" He said angrily.

With tears of pain, Caruso let out a yelp of pain and cringed in a submissive way. "Nothing! Nothing!"

"Don't lie to me!" Veloci growled, giving the bridle another pull, this time hard enough to allow the electricity to flow through the young teen's body. "Tell me the truth now."

"Okay! Okay!" Caruso cried out, trying his best to ignore the pain in his head and mouth. He tried to pull away from the pain, away from Victor, but that only made the pain he was experiencing even worse. Wanting the pain to stop, he gave into Victor's demand and answered his question. "I said... scaly freak.."

Victor gave a scary smile that sent chills down Caruso's spine. He reached out towards the boy again and this time gently rubbed his throat. "Was that so hard..?" He said calmly. Then suddenly, claws grew out of his fingertips and slightly grazed the boy, producing three shallow cuts with very little, if any, blood coming out. He didn't think it could have hurt the boy too much, but Caruso still let out a yelp of pain. "Just consider yourself lucky I didn't press harder." He scolded him. He then released his grip from the boy's neck.

Almost instinctively, Caruso brought his head to where Veloci had grabbed him and gently rubbed the small cuts and looked at his fingers, trying to check for any blood, inspecting the damage Victor might have inflicted on him. He looked up at Victor and opened up his mouth to say something, then thought better of it and shut his mouth and turned his head away. Veloci was right; he was lucky that he didn't press harder. As if he didn't suffer enough injuries as it is...

Victor smirked softly. "Why did you turn your head from me?" He asked as if he didn't know the answer to that question. But he did, in fact, understand the reason why, and it was exactly what he was hoping for. The boy was afraid of him now, although this was already apparent when he slashed his arm earlier with his sickle claw. But sometime after that, the boy continued to try to resist him, but, much to Victor's satisfaction, he did show signs of fear. Victor intended on using that fear to keep Caruso under control. When Caruso didn't answer Victor's question, his eyes narrowed very slightly. "You're afraid of me, aren't you?" He felt the corner of his mouth move upward in a dark smile.

Caruso bared his teeth, biting as hard as he could into the bit without causing himself too much pain. He swerved his head towards Victor, eyes bright with defiance. His right hand was clenched in a fist as he stared into Victor's cold eyes. Victor just stood there watching, waiting. He knew the boy wanted to say something, that he wanted to let it all out. But he also could tell the young human was holding back, knowing the consequence of angering him. He knew the pain he would endure if he dare try something else. Finally, Caruso let out a sigh, and lowered his head. "..yes." It was true he was afraid of Victor, but he still had one final move left. But he wasn't about to let Victor know that. He mustn't allow him to realize he still had a sense of hope.

Victor smiled in satisfaction. "And you should be." He turned around and began to walk towards the door. He lightly pulled on the rope, signaling for Caruso to follow him.

Caruso resisted for only a second or two before quickly giving in and following Victor. When he saw where they were headed, he was a little confused. He had thought that Victor wanted to keep him in this room for the experiments. Why were they leaving? "I thought you wanted to test the experiments on me in this room."

"I do." Victor responded without looking back. "I told one of my men to come over to drop off one of the mutants, restrained of course." He heard Caruso gulp behind him. Chuckling lightly a couple of times, he cast a sideways glance at the teen. "I told you I intended on having you fight one of my mutants."

"And just which mutantsaur do you plan on me fighting?" Caruso asked, sounding more arrogant than he had intended.

"Oh you'll see in due time, human." Victor said, chuckling. "Are you that anxious to fight, little Caruso?" Caruso wanted to respond. He wanted to tell the man to shut up, but he stopped himself. Victor wasn't expecting a response anyway, so he turned back towards the door and opened it up. In the doorway lay a large box. At first, one would believe it was some package filled with a lot of books or other heavy items. But both Victor and Caruso knew better. They could hear the hissing and scratching sounds coming from within the box. Something was in there, and it wanted out.

Caruso stared as Victor moved towards the box to examine the creature inside. The insane billionaire's back was turned towards him, and right in front of him, there was a way out. Caruso clenched a fist, trying to calculate his escape. He could change back into a Stegosaurus and knock Victor down onto the ground. Then, with the little, but precious, time he'd be given, he could bolt, and try to smash his way through the building and escape. He knew it was risky, but he probably wouldn't get another opportunity like this one. He knew it was now or never.

Victor was unaware of what Caruso was planning. His focus was now on the mutantsaur that was in the box. The box was too dark, so he had changed his eyes so he could see better. The mutantsaur wasn't as big as a Stegosaurus, but it seemed it could put up a good fight. Judging from the markings and the anatomy, Victor guessed it was a mutant mole, although it looked different than the other mutant moles he had seen. This one lacked a club tail, had more prominent fangs, and had no eyes. This didn't faze Victor though. All it meant to him was that the mole's other senses were probably heightened, more accute.

The mutantsaur seemed to scent Victor and turned its head towards him. It let out a hiss and charged, but instantly stopped when Victor let out a loud hiss. The mutantsaur backed away a little and seemed to wonder just what it was up against. It paced around the ground, confused at first, and then went back to hissing and snapping towards Victor, although this time keeping its distance. Victor mentally noted that the mole mutant was acting differently than the others had. This was because he had done something different with the primordial ooze. And he was satisfied with how it was working. Now to expose the boy and test it on him...

Caruso continued to feel the urge to attack Victor right then and there tugging away at his body. This action was too much like a double-edged sword for him. He could win his freedom, but if it failed, he could be severely punished. He knew, even before Victor told him, that this raptor was nothing like Moynihan. If he decided to punish him, it wouldn't be something simple like cleaning out a room or washing an animal. Victor could tear out an eye or break one of his legs, or even worse. Caruso shuddered as he thought about it. He knew the chances of him having an open opportunity like this again later on were slim, and if he wanted to be free, he should take the chance. But would it really be worth it?

He began to think about his friends and his family. What were they doing at this moment? Maybe they were looking for him. Maybe they were in the city, trying to find him. Maybe they would get here in time. Maybe they would be able to free him from this nightmare. But quickly Caruso let his hopes die down. He had been thinking that since he was captured, and no rescuer came to aide him. And the trackers were all destroyed. How were they going to find him? What were the odds of that? Caruso frowned softly, scolding himself silently for allowing himself to get worked up over nothing.

Victor glanced over his shoulder to look at Caruso, checking to make sure the boy hadn't attempted to escape. Although he had his doubts the boy would try anything, not with that nasty bridle on him. He turned his head back towards the mutant mole. "Are you prepared, human?"

Caruso nearly felt his heart skip a beat when Victor turned towards him. He thought he had lost his opportunity to escape. But he felt relieved when Victor once again turned his back towards him. And he knew that wouldn't last too long. He would have to act now. As he started his transformation, he responded to Victor's question. "Why yes I am..very prepared."

"You are?" Victor asked, sounding a little surprised. "Good then." Victor kept his back towards the boy, and lifted his hand to open up the mutantsaur's door. But he was caught off guard when he felt something slam painfully at his side. The villain grunted in pain and hit the ground roughly. While he was on the ground, he felt a shadow overcast him and he looked up. Caruso was now in his huge dinosaur form. Victor hissed angrily as he realized what happened. The little brat had pulled a sneak attack on him! Oh he'll pay for that!

After managing to knock Victor down with a light tail swipe, Caruso charged towards the door, preparing to knock the box over and get away. But he had seemed to forget about the bridle he was wearing, despite the pain it was bringing him. His mind was too focused on escaping. The only obstacle that remained was this box. And the mutantsaur inside couldn't have been that big. It wouldn't stop him.

AAAAARRRRAAAAAAAAAARRRRRR!

Caruso's eyes widened and he halted in front of the box. That roar, it was so hideous, so horrifying it had stopped him in his tracks. He had never heard such a sound in his life. He stood frozen, staring in shock at the box and the sound it had just gave out. What was wrong with him? Why wasn't he moving? Caruso kept scolding himself, trying to get himself to move. But his feet remained planted on the ground, and his eyes remained fixated on the box in front of him. He was instantly brought out of his trance when he felt a searing pain overwhelm him, culminating around his head and mouth.

Victor's face was contorted into a scowl. "Filthy little scoundrel! You still think you have a chance of escaping here?!" He pulled the rope attached to the bridle forcefully, driving the spikes deeper into Caruso's head. As Caruso let out a bellow of pain, Victor said coldly, "I told you I knew how to break humans. Now it's your turn..." With that he gave another sharp tug on the bridle, resulting in another Stegosaur scream from Caruso.

Caruso shook his head, trying to pull it away from the pain. But the more he pulled, the more pain he was in. He felt himself being pulled towards Victor. His eyes widened, and he tried again to pull back. But his attempt was met with sharp spikes starting to dig into the skin around his eyes. With tears of pain, he cried out. He was learning the hard way that the most sensitive spot of a Stegosaur's head was around the eyes. Wanting desperately to get away, Caruso blindly slammed his tail into the ground, trying to hard to hit Victor, but kept missing because his eyes were shut tightly, and couldn't see what he was hitting.

Victor continued to pull the Stegosaurus towards him. His sharp teeth were bared again, and he was resisting the urge to sink them into this foolish boy. His face had turned into a reddish shade of rage. The muscles in his arm were bulked up a bit, giving him more strength as he pulled on the rope, forcing Caruso to get closer to him. "Stop trying to resist me!" Victor shouted. "I've had enough of you, boy! You will submit to me!"

'N-No...! I won't..!' Caruso said bravely, trying his best to take his mind off the pain. He felt himself getting closer and closer to Victor. Finally he felt the tension from the bridle be released. He opened up his eyes, and found himself staring into Victor's enraged eyes. Victor was holding onto the headpiece, and pulling in such a way that Caruso wouldn't be able to pull away without causing some serious damage.

"I must admit, you have managed to keep up your resistance longer than others under my command have." Victor said in a strangely calm voice. "But like them, you will eventually give in."

'M-M-Make..me...' Caruso said boldly.

"Oh believe me, I intend to, you hairless monkey." Victor said darkly, and, without any warning, tugged on the headpiece with all his strength and activated the electricity inside the bridle. He was holding a safe part of the bridle where the electricity wouldn't harm him.

Caruso let out another bellow of anguish, feeling the spikes cutting around his eyes and head, the bit cutting against the corners of his mouth, the electricity mercilessly wreaking havoc on his body, and the blood dripping from the freshly open wounds on his head. Caruso was becoming overwhelmed in agony. He didn't know how much more of this he could take. The electricity was extremely painful. It felt like his nerves were going to be ripped right out of him. And the spikes on his head and in his mouth, they were just as bad. He was becoming frightened that he may end up blind or mute, or maybe even worse...

He opened up an eye and looked at Victor. Silently he was begging for mercy, hoping Victor would let up and release him. Victor saw this, and slowly smiled. But instead of stopping, he continued to pull on the bridle, allowing more electricity to course through the boy's body, and allowed the spikes to dig in deeper. "A human bridle you will never forget." He said coldly. "If you want me to stop, submit to me."

'N-No..I...' Caruso started to say but stopped and closed his eyes tightly. He tried his best to stifle a scream, but his will failed him. As he screamed, the bridle cut in further into his mouth, and the bit had cut into the top of his tongue deeply, almost slicing a chunk off. Unable to take the pain anymore, Caruso looked at Victor with watery eyes. 'I..I give up...please..stop..'

Victor narrowed his eyes, wondering briefly if this was another trap. But he obliged, not wanting to damage Caruso too much. He released the tension on the headpiece. Caruso changed back into his human form, but remained on the ground. He was on his knees, supporting himself with shaky arms. His eyes were wide with pain, and tears flowed from his eyes. He was trying hard not to cry, but the pain was too much. He tried to lift his tongue, but it stung mercilessly every time. He quickly realized that he wasn't going to be able to talk in human form. He closed his eyes tightly as he realized this, and stifled a sob. He could feel his dreams of becoming a celebrity slip through his fingers as he felt the pain in his mouth as well as on his face. Victor watched this sight and shook his head. "Such a weak thing you are." Caruso looked up at Victor. "You're no different than any other human I've..tamed so-to-speak."

Caruso tried to respond, but as soon as he opened his mouth to speak, he was quickly subdued by the pain on his mouth corners and tongue. He yelped, and brought a hand to his mouth, but wouldn't dare touch it for fear it would only make the pain worse.

"And you can forget about your friends rescuing you." Victor said as he knelt down in front of the boy. "I've told you this already. They'll never find you. I've sent Oscura and Michelle to take care of them." When Caruso looked at him in shock, Victor said, "Oh don't worry, I won't kill them. In fact, they might be joining you soon..." Caruso didn't respond. He simply turned his head away, his eyes downcast, having lost the fighting spirit they once had. Victor reached out and gripped the boy's lower jaw firmly and forced him to look at him in the eyes. "And don't think Moynihan will be able to help you either. That little traitor is no different than I am."

Caruso's eyes widened, and he attempted to jerk his head away. But Victor responded by gripping him tighter and pulling him roughly closer. As he looked at Victor with tear-filled eyes, the raptor said, "It's true, weakling. You told me yourself she trains you and your friends, didn't you? Why do you think she does that? Because she cares about you?" Victor chuckled coldly, half-heartedly. "I'm afraid you're mistaken. She's only doing it because she thinks you humans are weak too. She knows that mere humans would never be able to defeat me. So she trains you to become stronger. And why do you think she scolds you when you do something wrong? Just like me, she wants to control you. She wants you to submit to her will. She has her own way of doing it, I admit, but it's still the same thing."

Caruso started to tremble as Victor was telling him this. He felt a strange feeling well up inside of him. He couldn't bring himself to refuse to believe what Victor was telling him. He was allowing the information to digest in him. He could feel his will to resist weaken as the Velociraptor continued to speak harshly to him.

Victor moved his head closer to the boy so that his mouth was close to the side of his face. Victor then whispered into the boy's ear. "Do you deny it? You cannot deny it can you? You know it's true." He released his grip on the boy.

As much as Caruso would have loved to shout that he would deny it, he couldn't bring himself to disbelieve Victor. Everything he was telling him, it was making sense. Maybe Moynihan really wasn't any better than Victor was. She used more humane methods, but perhaps she was just like Victor. He could feel his will to fight back diminish as he accepted this new information, and let his body relax, no longer trying to move away from Victor or resist him. What was the point anymore? Even if Victor was wrong, his friends would never find him. He would never leave this place. He just had to accept that fact. He slowly closed his eyes and sighed softly, lowering his head in a sign of submission.

Smiling in satisfaction, Victor placed his hand on Caruso's head, stroking his dark bluish hair gently in a mocking sort of way. Caruso shuddered as Victor did this, but didn't resist. "There's a good lad." He said calmly, showing his sharp teeth as he grinned.

Caruso whimpered softly as Victor made that statement. A chill was spreading throughout his body as he came to the realization that he had lost. He had admitted defeat, and accepted his loss. He lost the will to fight back. He stared at his hands on the ground, and clenched them. A few tears streamed down his face and dripped onto the cold hard ground. He nearly gasped when he saw a slight tinge of red in them. He trembled again as he started to wonder if he would ever heal, both physically...and mentally. He began to worry about his loved ones. If they found him, were they going to find nothing but his corpse rotting on the ground? Caruso swallowed hard, trying so hard not to sob.

So this was how it was going to end, Caruso thought. He had, at one time, predicted that he would be kidnapped, but he never realized it would have been like this, for this reason. He thought he would be kidnapped for ransom because he thought he would become a great and popular celebrity. He felt he had the looks and the talent. He had never known a time in his life when he didn't want to be rich and famous. But now he may not ever get a chance. No matter what he could do, who'd want to see him now, with these cuts on his face? He gingerly placed a hand on his face, and winced as he felt the bridle's cold material.

"This is hard for you, isn't it?" Victor asked callously. "I wouldn't be surprised. Celebrity wannabes like yourself are so sensitive to criticism and the cold hard truth. Someone says one thing negative about you and you let them walk all over you." Caruso looked up at Victor again, eyes wide with a mixture of fear and mild shock. But he didn't try to talk back and prove Victor wrong. "And if they aren't lacking confidence, they're too arrogant. I've seen celebrity wannabes who are so cocky that, even if everyone else disagrees with them, they believe they have talent and can make something of themselves." He gave the teen a cold glance. "And you, my little prisoner, are both."

Caruso's body shook once as he took notice of one of the words Victor had used: prisoner. It gave him a sense of entrapment, never to be free again. He glanced at the ceiling above him and wondered if he was never going to see daylight again.

"In the time you have been here, you've proven to be a rather arrogant and yet insecure individual. You think you had what it takes to defeat me, but in the end, you're just a coward, a weakling." Veloci said coldly. "You will never amount up to anything, do you realize that, Irwin? You can't deny it. You know I speak the truth. I bet you drove your friends insane with your pathetic visions of fame and fortune. I'm probably doing them a favor keeping you here."

Caruso couldn't hold back any longer and let out an audible cry, shuddering and breathing in sharply as tears flowed uncontrollably on his face, stinging him a little. He knew succumbing this way would only prove Victor's point even further, but he didn't care anymore. Victor's statement made him realize that his friends probably had abandoned him on purpose. Maybe they did sacrifice him to Victor just to save themselves. Perhaps they had grown tired of him and his fame-seeking ways.