Claire was watching television with Owen. Well, they weren't really watching, per se, but rather, trying to stay awake. Owen was in the process of dozing off, it seemed. He was leaning back against Claire's belly like she was a living couch, but she didn't mind. She licked his cheek as he drifted off. He smiled and opened his eyes.
"I must be tired," he yawned, "Lily's really taken it out of me."
Claire turned off the TV with her tail and nuzzled his chest.
"You wanna go to bed?"
"Only if you want to."
Claire mooed and bumped his cheek with the side of her horn.
"Don't just do things because I tell you to."
Owen smiled and pulled her face forward for a kiss.
"If I ignored your advice, I'd be dead a million times over."
"Damn right."
As they started to embrace, the pattering of tiny feet crossed the hall. They turned and saw Lily standing on two legs in the doorway. She was holding her stuffed cow and sucking on her foot. Claire smiled and stretched herself out, then walked over to her.
"Hey, sweetheart. What's up?"
Lily pointed to the kitchen.
"Water."
Claire rolled her eyes.
"Baby, if we give you a glass of water, you'll just be up in five minutes."
Lily frowned and pointed to the kitchen again.
"Water."
Owen smiled and picked her up by the armpits.
"The girl wants what she wants. You know there's no arguing with her."
Claire rolled her eyes as Owen and Lily rubbed noses.
"Fine, but don't blame me when she wakes us up in the middle of the night."
Claire lumbered over to the pantry, opening it with her right horn. She grabbed a small, plastic cup with her beak.
"Pink!" Lily called from across the room.
Claire rolled her eyes and grabbed a pink cup instead.
"You're spoiled rotten, you know that?"
As she filled up the glass with water from the reverse osmosis tap, Claire looked out the window above the sink and saw something very peculiar. A fleet of vehicles was driving down the road towards their house. With wide eyes, Claire turned to Owen.
"Someone's coming. Give me Lily."
Owen handed her their daughter, and Claire made her way to a decorative table in the hall. On the surface was a small brass statue of a bull, which Claire turned around until it clicked gently. The wall opened, and Claire snuck into a secret room with Lily. Once they were locked inside, Lily looked up at Claire with wide eyes.
"Water?"
Claire nodded.
"Soon, Lily. Soon. Be quiet for now."
Lily whimpered and buried her face in her mother's chest. Claire kissed her forehead.
"Good girl . . . Good girl . . ."
They waited for a long time. Claire stared into the darkness, holding Lily in her arms protectively. They both shrieked as the wall opened. When Claire saw that it was Owen, she mooed grumpily and placed Lily on the ground.
"What was that about? Are they gone?"
Owen shook his head.
"That's just it. They're here to see you."
***TSJWFEW***
Claire stared at the strange man who was now sitting in her living room. They had invited him in, but insisted firmly that his coworkers wait outside. He was sipping his coffee casually, as though he had all the time in the world. Both Owen and Claire stared at him with anticipation. Finally, he lowered his mug.
"I work for InGen."
Claire felt her muscles grow tense.
"What do you want? Haven't you done enough damage already?"
The man gave a crooked smile.
"The company's been bleeding out the throat. We're here to make things right. You're Claire Dearing, are you not?"
Claire looked away.
"I was. I mean, I am, but why do you need me? I'm of no use to you like this."
"Your current situation is exactly the reason we decided to contact you."
Claire gulped nervously.
"How did you find out?"
The man smiled.
"People don't just disappear off the face of the Earth, Ms. Dearing. It wasn't easy to find you, but once we had the trail, things unfurled from there."
Claire wrapped her tail around her feet.
"What do you want from me?"
The man placed his coffee on the table.
"We need you to come back with us so that we can run a few tests. Your unique DNA makes you something of an asset to our company."
Claire frowned.
"Absolutely not. I'm not your guinea pig."
"With all due respect, Ms. Dearing, you are part animal," he said simply, "Your genetic makeup could do us a lot of good."
Owen uncrossed his legs and leaned forward.
"What do you plan to use it for?"
The man took a deep breath.
"The military-"
Both Claire and Owen groaned.
"Oh, not this again!" Owen grumbled, "Haven't you learned your lesson? Dinosaurs are not a suitable replacement for soldiers."
"They wouldn't have to replace them if the soldiers were enhanced. Imagine a man with thicker skin, aerodynamic plates, or tail spikes. They'd fare far better in tough situations. You'd be saving lives. What's more, this research can be applied to medicine. The blood that runs through your veins is only slightly different from before. How does it manage to sustain a body so different from its former shell? These are questions we need answered, for the good of InGen and for the good of our country."
Claire stared at the man with shock.
"No . . . No, that's unethical, and I will have no part in it."
"Just consider your options for a moment," he said calmly, "You can come willingly with us and return in a few weeks, or you can risk having the whole world find out about you. We need you, Ms. Dearing. If it comes down to blackmail, so be it. It's your decision."
It was then that Lily came waddling into the room. Claire turned her head and tried to nudge her back to where she came from. Lily whined angrily and slapped her tail against the ground.
"Go to your room, sweetie," Claire cooed, "This is adult talk."
The guest leaned forward in his chair and stared at Lily with fascination. Something about the way he was sizing her up sat wrong with Claire. Owen sensed it, too. He stood up very slowly, reaching for something to defend his family. The man gave an unsettling smile.
"You have a hybrid child . . ."
Claire stepped over Lily, shielding her with her body.
"Don't touch her. Don't you dare touch her."
The man chuckled quietly.
"Oh, I'm not going to hurt her."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bag of oats. Lily squeaked and darted out from beneath Claire's legs before she could stop her. She stood up on her hind legs and tried to reach for the treat. The man laughed.
"She has spirit. Tell you what: let me take her instead. She has more human DNA in her anyway. Makes it easier for us."
Owen grabbed a poker that was lying beside the fireplace and held it out like a sword.
"Back up."
The man sneered.
"There's no need for that. I assure you, we can offer a very generous fee . . ."
Claire lowed angrily.
"Our daughter is not for sale! Get out of our house!"
The man looked from Claire to Owen. Seeing that they weren't going to cooperate, he lifted his hands and sighed.
"I was hoping it wouldn't come to this."
With a swift motion, he scooped up Lily. As Claire prepared to charge forward, he pulled a pistol from his back pocket.
"Don't even think about it, unless you want your daughter to see your brains painting the wall."
Claire snorted and tossed her head, but backed up. Owen dropped his poker.
"Let her go," he whispered dangerously, "I'll kill you. I will."
The man shook his head.
"If you want your daughter to be safe, you'll stay where you are."
He backed up until he reached the front entranceway. Lily tried to wiggle out of his grasp, and when she couldn't, she started screaming. She reached out for Claire with tears in her eyes, sobbing loudly.
"She needs me, don't you see that she's calling to me?" Claire wept, not daring to move.
"It's only calling to you because that's what it knows to do," the man said dismissively, "It's no different from a dog on a leash."
Lily screeched and kicked her legs. She grabbed at the air, trying to get back to her mother.
"MAMA! MAMA! HELP!"
Claire wailed miserably, her face wet with tears.
"Lily! . . ."
The man waved his gun, and Claire backed up. She lowered her head and let her tears soak the carpet.
"Please . . . Don't take my daughter. She's all I have. Take me instead."
The man shifted Lily to his elbow and opened the door.
"You had your chance. I made an offer, and you turned it down. Now I'm taking what's rightfully mine. Next time, patent your creation."
As soon as he was out of the house, Owen crossed the room and knelt down beside Claire.
"Call Ellie. I'm going after her."
Claire whimpered.
"Owen, you'll be killed!"
He shook his head.
"I have a plan."
He stood up and ran to the kitchen, grabbing a fork along the way.
"Call Ellie. Hurry!"
Without a moment's hesitation, Claire ran into the spare bedroom and reached for the phone. As she did, she got a better look at the vehicles parked outside. She was surprised to see that they did not belong to InGen. This made matters even more complicated. Claire had no idea if she could negotiate with these people or not, but she decided that it would be wise to take note of her enemy's name.
The black letters on the sides of the trucks read "Biosyn".
***TSJWFEW***
Lewis Dodgson grunted as the mutant baby tried to kick his face. He opened the back doors of a cargo van and shoved her in a small kennel, slamming the door sharply. She squealed unhappily and tried to bite the metal with her freaky mouth. Dodgson slapped her away.
"Shut up! If you give us any more trouble, I'll have to tranquilize you."
The child glared at him. Obviously, she was too stupid to understand what he was saying, but she almost seemed to be reacting to his comment. He bent down and smiled at her condescendingly.
"Don't give me that look, you brainless calf. You're mine, and nothing's gonna change that."
He stood up straight and slammed the back doors one by one. Turning to his associates, he pointed to the house.
"Burn it. Make sure the cadavers are unrecognizable."
He paused.
"On second thought, shoot the mother. We'll take her body back for testing. We don't want to damage our live specimen by dissecting it."
***TSJWFEW***
As soon as Claire told Ellie what had happened, she reassured her that she would send her finest dinosaurs to deal with the issue. Claire wondered why she couldn't do it herself, but that wasn't the most pressing issue. The fleet of vehicles was starting to come to life, and Claire was dead set on pursuing them. Trouble was, a few men were running up to the house with large guns. It would have to be a quick getaway.
Claire ran through the house, making her way towards the back door.
"Owen! Owen, follow me!"
He didn't reply. Claire stomped her foot in agitation.
"Owen, please! Forget your plan and-"
Claire lifted her head as she heard a chorus of frightened screams. When she peeked out the window, she saw the armed men lying motionless in the grass. She pushed open the front door and stepped across the lawn cautiously. She saw movement to her left and wheeled around. A large dinosaur became fully visible. For a moment, Claire couldn't so much as breathe. As she turned to run, the dinosaur reached out and grabbed her, then stroked her head gently. Claire gasped in surprise, but went limp when she felt a familiar mustache brush up against her neck.
"Owen . . ."
He nodded and put her down. Claire stared up at him in shock.
"Owen, how on Earth- No, you know what, save the story for later. We need to find Lily."
***TSJWFEW***
A group of Biosyn employees circled the van that held Dodgson's precious cargo. They looked around nervously, wondering where their companions had gone to.
"I don't like this, Joe," one of them muttered, "Check on the kid, okay?"
"Why?"
"I just wanna get out of here. If she's secure, we can get a move on."
His companion rolled his eyes and opened the back doors. When he looked into the kennel, his face fall.
"It's gone."
The first man whipped around.
"No! That's impossible!"
There was no sign of the infant. As he unlatched the kennel door to examine the lock, something rushed forward and slammed it open all the way. The baby dinosaur appeared suddenly, as if by magic. It hopped out of the van and started running across the grass, leaving the dumbfounded men behind.
"It can camouflage!"
***TSJWFEW***
Dodgson sat calmly in his truck as he waited for his workers to return. He was a little miffed that they were taking so long to burn down the house, but otherwise-
He was snapped out of his daze when he saw two dinosaurs running towards the truck. Through the side mirror, he could make out the shape of a pale theropod and the pudgy mother. He jostled the gearstick and slammed his foot on the gas pedal in panic.
"GO! GO! GO!"
As he sped down the road, he saw the remainder of his fleet following his lead. The last car in the procession started to move forward, but it was yanked back by the taller dinosaur, who grabbed the rear with his teeth and claws. The herbivore slammed her head against the trunk, digging her horns into the metal. She then pulled off the door like it was a lid on a jam jar. They looked inside. Finding nothing, they proceeded to run after the next car.
"Oh, no you don't!" Dodgson growled.
Turning on cruise control, he pulled out his gun and started firing at the herbivore. When his bullets hit their mark, she screamed in pain. Hearing her distress, the second dinosaur ran forward and blocked the shots. Dodgson's gun began to click, and he threw it to the passenger's seat in fury. The herbivore had begun to charge him again, and she was gaining ground. She ran up beside the truck and lifted her head.
"Give us our daughter!" she roared.
Dodgson shook his head.
"Not a chance."
She slammed her body against the truck.
"I'll flip you over! Give me my baby!"
Dodgson reached down into his drink holder and grabbed a taser.
"It's too late! Here's one for you to remember me by, you stupid cow!"
As he reached out to zap her, the second dinosaur pushed her out of the way and took the attack, thrusting his body against the vehicle. As he did, he caused the truck to roll over. Stunned by the electricity, he grabbed the tumbling bulk, and they both rolled across the grass in a messy tangle. When Dodgson got his bearings, he saw that he was lying outside of his truck. The white dinosaur was near him. He looked badly injured.
Without missing a beat, Dodgson stood up and ran for the woods.
"This isn't over yet!" he called over his shoulder.
***TSJWFEW***
Claire ran up to Owen. He was lying motionless with deep gashes along his side. Claire could see blood glistening in the moonlight.
"Oh my god . . ."
Owen exhaled sharply, his breath kicking up a puff of dust. He lifted his head, disoriented, and focused on Claire.
"I'm here, Owen."
He leaned forward and bumped her with his snout, then turned his head to the rest of the fleet. He let out a gentle chuffing sound. Claire put her front foot on his shoulder.
"I'll find Lily, but I'm coming back for you. Hang on."
Claire thundered away, leaving a very weak Owen behind. She felt badly about abandoning him, but she didn't slow down, for Lily was waiting to be rescued. To her surprise, the vehicles slowed to a stop. She did the same, wondering if they were planning some sort of attack.
It was then that she heard a deep growl.
Turning around very slowly, Claire came face to face with a large dinosaur. She felt her heart drop as he stood up, his sail blocking out the moon. With a malevolent grin, he snaked his head around and stared directly at her.
"Hello, Claire . . ."
***TSJWFEW***
Robin stumbled through the forest with her friends close behind. Ellie had instructed her to bring as many able bodies as possible to prevent some sort of catastrophe involving Claire's baby and a mysterious company. Naturally, she had invited Henry and Zara, who were her best friends next to Ellie. Of course, she hadn't told them the details of the mission, so they were getting a little bit antsy.
"Robin, I mean no offense whatsoever, but this is kind of crazy," Zara called as she struggled to squeeze through the trees, "It's terribly late, and I was in the middle of a date-"
Robin snorted.
"Oh, please! Vic can wait. This is war!"
Zara blinked.
"War? Oh, Robin. What have you gotten me into? You know I can't fight!"
Henry grunted as he stumbled over a fallen log.
"Me neither! I gave up violence when I became a father. Besides, I'm really out of shape, and I couldn't possibly hold my own in a brawl."
As Robin stepped out of the forest, she gasped.
"Henry, you might want to rephrase that statement . . ."
***TSJWFEW***
Claire screamed in pain as the jaws of an angry spinosaurus clamped around her frill. He shook her violently, then let her drop. Dizzy from losing so much blood, Claire stumbled to the side, nearly falling over. Her assailant snatched her up again by the leg. He let her drop once more. This time, she didn't get up.
"Oh, Claire. You should have known that it would end this way. You always were the weak one."
She panted heavily, gazing at him with one eye.
"You just couldn't forget about your sister. Was it worth it? Was it worth it to lose everything you ever had in order to keep your family?"
Claire tried to stand up, but found that she couldn't. She lowed quietly and went limp.
"It's over, Claire. You've lost. Family means nothing. You should have put your work first," he hissed, "I told you this would happen. Do you remember? I said that if you didn't let them go, you'd only be holding onto your weakness. You laughed. You didn't believe me. Now it's my turn to laugh."
Claire winced as he placed his foot on her side. She could feel his breath on her neck. He was getting ready for the final blow.
"It's such a pity you ended up this way. You had real potential. Now, you're going to die like an animal . . ."
Claire closed her eyes, bracing herself for the killing bite. Instead of being attacked, however, she felt his foot slide down from her belly. He had noticed something. Claire opened her eyes and saw Owen limping towards them. He snarled at the spinosaurus, who snarled back. Claire lifted her head slightly and tried to speak, but her voice came out in a whisper.
"Owen, no . . . You'll be killed . . ."
She felt her strength draining from her. She was fading fast. The last thing she saw before she went unconscious was the two dinosaurs rushing towards each other.
***TSJWFEW***
Owen slammed into the spinosaurus with a force that would be enough to crush a creature of smaller proportions. His wounds stung painfully, but it was enough to keep him alert. He snapped at the monster's neck, trying to get a good grip. The spinosaur raked his teeth across Owen's back. With a ferocious roar, Owen slashed at the monster's sail. Screaming in pain, the spinosaurus backed off. That was it. That was the weak point.
Owen prepared to attack again, unlatching his jaw. After a beat, he changed his mind. Something told him that exposing his jaw was a bad idea. With a ferocious growl, he charged at the spinosaurus again.
The two dinosaurs snapped and slashed and bit and bashed until they were both exhausted. Weakened from his previous injuries, Owen felt his vision swimming. It dawned on him that he wasn't going to make it. Swaying woozily, he shook his head and charged his opponent one last time. If he was going down, he was taking the monster with him.
Suddenly, a second spinosaurus pushed into the battle. Owen stepped back in surprise, letting the new dinosaur lead the fight. A yellow allosaur joined him, giving a valiant cry.
"PEEPEETSOOH!"
Owen stumbled away from the fighting dinosaurs, utterly spent. He felt a pair of leathery wings wrap around his waist, and began to thrash around weakly.
"Shhh. It's me. Don't panic."
Recognizing Zara's voice, Owen went limp. He looked up at her and saw that she was holding a pair of massive glasses in her beak. He gave her a questioning look.
"I'm supposed to be taking care of these while he fights. Come with me. Claire's waiting."
Owen leaned against her for support. They made their way back to the deck of the cabin, where Claire was starting to wake up. She looked around drowsily and groaned.
"Lily . . . Where's Lily? . . ."
Owen was about to ask Zara if she could find his daughter, but he realized that she would not understand him. He nudged her and pointed to Claire. Zara cocked her head.
"She's going to be okay. She just lost a lot of blood."
Owen shook his head. He tried to speak, but all that came out was a growl.
"I don't understand you, Owen."
He dug his toes into the ground with frustration.
Lily. I'm asking if you can find Lily.
He didn't have to wait for a response, however, because he heard his daughter calling out to him. He turned his head and stared out into the forest. Lily was running towards him, utterly panicked. Claire saw her, too. Struggling to get to her feet, she stepped down from the deck shakily and limped over to her daughter.
Without warning, Dodgson sprinted out from behind the house and snatched up their child. Claire mooed in fear, and Owen pulled himself out of Zara's grasp. Dodgson put his hand on Lily's frill.
"Come closer, and I'll snap her neck."
Claire and Owen stopped walking.
"You will let my troops go," Dodgson hissed, "Tell your dinosaur friends to fall back."
Claire started breathing rapidly.
"Give her back. Give Lily back."
Dodgson sneered.
"Can't. You've proven yourself to be a nuisance. It would be foolish to let you believe you've won. She's coming with me."
As he said this, he dug his fingers into Lily's belly. She squealed, then frowned deeply. Turning her head to face Dodgson, she let out a growling hum, like an angry cat. As he turned her head back to her parents, the hum grew louder.
"Hrmrmrm . . ."
Dodgson squeezed her again.
"Quiet, brat!"
Claire's eyes went wide as sharp teeth slipped out of Lily's lips. Her fingernails curled into claws, and her back sprouted quills and spikes. As her skin grew pale, she turned to face Dodgson and roared. His eyes went wide.
"What the-"
Suddenly, Lily whipped her head around and clamped her teeth around his arm. Dodgson shrieked and tried to shake her off, but she held on tight. Finally, as he whipped his arm up and down, the triple hybrid Lily was flung into the air. She changed back to her former self as she flew, screaming in terror. Claire ran forward and slid across the ground on her back. Lily landed on her belly, unharmed. Claire reached forward and gave her a tight hug. Lily squeaked happily.
Meanwhile, Dodgson's wound had begun to worsen. His veins were growing dark with some kind of poison, and the edges of the laceration were curling up like burning parchment. He screamed in pain and ran away, holding his injured arm.
"This isn't over! You can't keep your family safe forever! I'll be back for the calf someday, and I will get what I want!"
They watched in exhaustion as he jumped into an abandoned truck and sped away. If he was coming back, it wouldn't be for a very long time.
***TSJWFEW***
An hour later, Claire lay on the lawn with Owen, who was still a dinosaur. She wrapped a bandage around his arm slowly. He winced in pain, then grumbled passively.
"You're really stupid, you know that?"
He made a soft chuffing sound.
"You could have been killed. Then where would we be?"
Owen nuzzled her side gently, speaking in a language that she could not understand. She placed her front foot on his snout, stroking him gently.
"I love you too much to let you die. Next time, don't risk your life to save me, okay?"
Owen rested his head on her back, purring gently. She licked the wounds on his side. Surprised, he blinked and cocked his head.
"I know it's not sanitary, Owen, but heaven knows, you've been licked before."
He waggled his eyebrows cheekily.
"That's exactly what I mean. Just don't expect this all the time. Understand?"
Owen smiled and rubbed his nose against her side. He made a series of growling sounds. Claire cocked her head.
"What?"
"He says that he wishes he could do the same for you," the non-evil spinosaurus said as he approached them, "But he's afraid to, because- don't take this the wrong way- you would probably taste very delicious right now."
Claire gave Owen a sassy look, then turned to the spinosaurus.
"Any sign of Dodgson?"
He shook his head.
"He ran off with my evil counterpart. We captured a few grunts, but they know nothing of his plan. We've called off the search for now. There's no point in wasting energy."
Claire nodded.
"It's been a long night for everyone."
"At least you didn't have to fight yourself," he muttered, "I'm going to be tasting my own blood all night. I don't know how to explain this to my family."
Claire sighed.
"How's June, by the way?"
"Better. Still not adjusted, but we're getting there. She misses you."
Claire smiled sadly.
"I'll have to visit more often. Once this whole mess is cleared up, that is . . ."
Right on cue, Ellie stepped out of a portal with her grandmother following close behind. She noticed Claire, and jogged over briskly.
"Did they get away?"
Claire nodded. Ellie snapped her fingers.
"Damn. Sorry I couldn't come sooner. I was busy with something."
Claire couldn't help but notice the reproachful look that Elkay gave her granddaughter.
"Now that I'm here, we should probably discuss additional security measures," Ellie continued, "Tonight could have been a disaster. We got lucky. It's best if we make sure that nothing like this ever happens again."
Claire nodded.
"We'll do anything to keep Lily safe. What did you have in mind?"
Ellie took a deep breath.
"A spell. I can create a net around your house that repels people with ill intent. Only your friends will be allowed to pass."
"That sounds reasonable. Is there a catch?"
Ellie looked away.
"In order to keep the spell going, you will have to make sure that neither you nor Lily nor Owen goes past the perimeter. As long as you're in this world, you won't be able to leave the ranch."
Claire nodded slowly.
"And what if we go to the other world? Couldn't we just live on Isla Nublar?"
Ellie shook her head.
"Vivian and Karen live in this world. If you disappear off the face of the Earth, Dodgson will go after those who are closest to you. If you choose to go through with this plan, I can set up secondary nets around them: ones that will travel as they do."
Claire closed her eyes.
"This isn't practical. What about Lily's education? She's supposed to be going to school on Isla Nublar."
Ellie pulled a paper out of her pocket and folded it in half. She licked the edge and tore it apart. Claire cocked her head curiously as she held out the two pieces.
"These are our worlds. The Park Universe and the World Universe. Whenever I open a portal, our dimensions overlap."
She placed one paper on top of the other. Reaching into her back pocket, she pulled out a marker.
"If I draw a circle to represent the force field . . ."
She made a circle on the first page and pulled them apart, revealing that the ink had seeped through.
"Both worlds are covered. Your land is actually larger than Isla Nublar, so you can roam freely on the island."
Claire sighed.
"Even so, that limits our scope significantly. Not that I was about to strut down Times Square . . ."
Ellie smiled.
"That's where things get interesting. Suppose I were to also build a permanent portal: one that would allow you access to anywhere you can imagine. You'd be free to travel the universe, as long as you don't roam outside of your ranch's hectares."
Claire cocked her head.
"How far is that?"
"Far," Ellie affirmed, "Your property is very large."
Claire nodded.
"This sounds like a good deal. Just to be clear, our friends in this world-"
"-would be able to reach you with ease," Ellie finished, "If someone seeks you out with the intent to harm your family, they will find themselves disoriented by magic. They won't be able to locate you, bar none."
Claire rubbed her chin.
"Does it keep out salespeople?"
Ellie shook her head.
"Not unless they plan to murder you."
Claire lifted her head.
"This sounds like our best option. Owen, you in?"
He nodded. Claire turned back to Ellie.
"We'll do it. Cast the spell."
Ellie did as she was told. The shimmering dome that crossed the sky was beautiful, and yet there was something sinister about it. Claire couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she could have sworn that she'd seen this kind of magic before. It was only when she'd gone to bed, after the forcefield had become invisible, that she realized what she had been subconsciously dreading.
Their ranch was now very similar to the stegoceratops valley.