Chapter 17: Fight to the Death
The morning sun rose and the humans were ready to make their march towards the south jungle. Their plan was to wipe the dinosaurs out before they awoke.
"Remember, leave the Velociraptors and that girl alive," Dr. Lewis orders the soldiers. They armed themselves with the M16's and made their trek through the meadow.
When they reached the edge of the jungle, they couldn't see any dinosaur, they couldn't even hear one.
"Make a row of ten!" Dr. Lewis orders and ten soldiers line up, followed by another row of ten. The soldiers march in, with the others following close behind them.
Meanwhile, the raptors had heard them and they hid in the darkness of the jungle. The other dinosaurs also used the dark as cover.
'Wait for the right moment,' Ulyssa whispers a chirp to the others.
Aurora and Blue were a bit further away and Aurora counts the soldiers. "There's about fifty of them," she whispers to Blue.
'I thought there would be more,' the raptor quietly replies.
The first row of soldiers were edging closer to the trap set up by Aurora. The trap was hiding behind some tall grass. Then, the soldiers moved the grass away to reveal a big Triceratops, lying on its side.
"Don't worry, it's dead," one of the soldiers said.
Suddenly, the T. Rexes showed themselves, there were three fully grown T. Rexes. "Nobody move a muscle!" Dr. Lewis orders, but the soldiers panicked and began to run just as the T. Rexes roared.
"NOW!" Aurora shouts and all the dinosaurs went on the attack.
The humans were no match for the indestructible animals. Scar and Spike charged at the humans, crushing them under their feet. The Triceratops, with their horns impaled a few of the soldiers. The T. Rexes used their jaws to chomp on them.
As suspected, the humans who were killed turned to black ash. The Velociraptors emerge to take down the humans who were trying to escape the trap. 'Go Aurora! We got this!' Delta shouts and bites down on a soldier's neck.
Aurora takes the sack and jumps on Blue's back and they hurry away. Dr. Lewis, who escaped the carnage saw them go and decided to follow them.
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Blue makes it to the broken barrier, featuring the Land of Shadows. She and Aurora could hear thunder and they smelled brimstone, meaning that there were volcanoes in there.
"Go back and lead Ulyssa's pack and the other dinosaurs to the camp. I'll meet you at the meadow," Aurora said to Blue. The raptor then nudges against her alpha and Aurora knew she was afraid.
"Hey, it will be okay I promise," Aurora said to the beta.
'Please, come back alive,' Blue chirps and it sounded more like an order.
"I will," Aurora replies and then enters pass the barrier and disappears.
Blue turns around and heads back to the jungle, unaware that she passed Dr. Lewis, hiding beneath some geode rocks. He emerges once the raptor was gone and also re-enters the Land of Shadows.
The Land of Shadows was an unwelcoming site for Aurora. Thunder clouds covered the sky, making it completely dark as night. Aurora saw the volcano chain and hurries up a hill.
To her surprise, she saw an opening leading into one volcano. She sheds her hoodie and holds the sack containing the bomb tight in her hand. She then enters the mouth of the cave.
The cave was dark and Aurora had to feel the walls around her. However, whenever she sniffed the brimstone scent in the air, a trail of light enters her mind. "This is so weird," she said to herself.
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Once the fifty humans were wiped out, Blue, Ulyssa, and their packs lead the dinosaurs toward the human encampment at top speed. They were eager to kill the remaining invaders and save the afterlife.
'Leave Lewis to me! I will chomp his head like I did before!' Blue orders and they went on the attack.
Scar and Spike roar, causing the humans to jump out of their tents, but that was a death wish. The Velociraptors and the T. Rexes charge at them and killed them in one fell swoop.
However, Esteban and Joana were in the safety of darkness and the dinosaurs didn't notice them. "Let's go find that bitch," Esteban orders his wife and they leave.
There were a hundred humans in the camp and they became black dust when the dinosaurs killed them. When the last one was killed, the dinosaurs roar with delight, but Blue knew something was wrong.
'Lewis is not here,' Charlie chirps to her beta.
Blue knew that, but she was interested in looking for Aurora's self-proclaimed parents. She found their tent, but they were gone. 'Find them!' Ulyssa orders when she noticed Blue's determination to find them.
One of the T. Rexes roar, it was a victory roar.
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Aurora made it to what appeared to be the volcano's bottom, where it was covered with a thick layer of ash. She calculated the time she would need to get out and takes out the bomb.
She sets the clock to detonate after fifteen minutes. That would give her time to get out of the volcano and reach the barrier. When it began to tick, Aurora turns and runs.
Her heart was in her mouth as she ran at a speed she never done before. She felt like she was running at cheetah top, much like a Velociraptor. The scent trail in her mind lighted the way for her.
Unknown to her, she actually set the clock to detonate at ten minutes. When she reaches the mouth of the cave, the bomb goes off! The force of the blast sent Aurora flying through the air and she tumbles down the hill.
The volcano begins to rumble, it was awakened by the blast, and the lava began to boil and sizzle.
Aurora wakes up to ringing in her ears, she had a few scrapes on her body, but she was fine. She then notices the ground rumbling and she realizes that the volcano was ready to blow.
She scrambles to her feet and was about to run, when she saw the one man she hated all her life. Dr. Lewis stares at her coldly, while holding a pistol in his hand.
"Unbelievable," he said, referring to the volcano. "You're pretty smart, much like a Velociraptor. In fact, I think you are a Velociraptor," he adds and cocks back the trigger.
Suddenly, the volcano's top blew, sending lava balls into the sky. Then, the chain began to react and the other volcanoes begin to erupt. "What a grand way to die," Lewis said to Aurora.
He was about to shot her, when Aurora charges at him, crashing into his body. He flew backwards, losing his grip on the gun, and Aurora grabs it. She resumes her running with Lewis behind her.
Lava balls began to land on the ground and explode. Aurora dodges them as best she could, but suddenly, a lava ball lands in front of her. The force of the explosion sends her backwards.
Then, the ball spits out lava, landing on Aurora's leg! She begins to scream in agony as the lava's fire engulfs her hip and thigh. She tries in vain to put it out, but it continues to burn her flesh.
Back at the raptors, Blue wails in agony as her leg began to boil and burn, as if it was on fire. 'Oh no! Aurora's in danger!' Delta screeches and the pack knew what was happening.
'Aurora!' Blue screams in agony as her leg continues to burn.
Lewis watches in glee as the poor girl tries to pat out the fire on her leg. Then, out of the blue, Robert Muldoon appears! He sheds his vest and uses it to put out the flames on Aurora's leg. It worked, but Aurora was badly burned.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Lewis shouts angrily at Muldoon.
"I don't like people who kill for pleasure," Muldoon answers, taking Aurora in his arms, and he turns to run.
"MULDOON! You bastard!" Lewis shouts and runs after him.
Then, lava emerges from the volcano's cave and top, creating a river.
Lewis sees the lava going after him and he hurries as fast as he could. Aurora notices him and takes aim and shoots. The bullet hits Lewis in the kneecap and he goes down.
He wails in pain, clutching his leg, but with the lava close by, he tries his best to stand. It was too late as the lava engulfs him and he disintegrates into black dust.
For the briefest moment, Aurora was happy that Lewis was finally gone, but she and Muldoon still had to reach the barrier.
Then, something begins to happen. The ground begins to shake and then, it opens up. Aurora knew that the plan was working as the connection was being destroyed. In a few minutes, the Land of Shadows would be no more and no humans would invade the afterlife.
Muldoon and Aurora make it to the opening of the barrier and made it through as the connection vanishes into nothingness.
Muldoon stops running and places Aurora on the ground. He tares open the jeans, showing the horrific burns on her leg. The skin was tar black, the muscle was showing, and Muldoon says, "These are fourth-degree burns. I'm going to amputate this leg."
"No! That's not necessary!" Aurora replies.
"But infection might kill you if I don't-" "There is another way," Aurora interrupts him and adds, "Head south to the jungle."
"Aurora, please," Muldoon said.
"Trust me," she insists and Muldoon looks in her eyes and back at her leg. He then hoists her onto his back and begins to walk towards the south jungle.
In the shadows, Esteban and Joana saw the two and began to follow them.
From the author: WOW! This part literary scared me! But the story is not yet complete! Stick around for more!