DaPPA: Two Worlds, One Family

by Darksage95

Hazel, her sister Hanna, Chris, Daisy, and Ellis are now the park's newest mentors. Not long after their return from Temporary Park, they meet Daniel Rimbauer, a rookie eager to be part of their team. Smart, daring, athletic, and compassionate, he soon proves to be a critical asset. But all is not as it seems, for Daniel has his own agenda, one that may put the park in danger.

9. The Search Begins

Alright everyone, here is the next chapter in TWoF. In this chapter is the mystery creature I was talking about. Let's review the hints.

It lived during the Late Cretaceous

It was discovered in the early 2000's

It's an herbivore and terrestrial

It's not from Hatzeg Island

It appeared in the media very recently

Part of its name involves a place that is popular in the world, but is secret. Only "certain" individuals can access it. The location is popular only in that fictional setting

"We have a new weather report. Lightning has struck. I repeat. Lightning has struck."

The other reason why I'm excited to introduce them is because I based them off a certain character group I like. With the exception of a couple of them, they are based off certain characters from a particular TV series.

What group you may ask? Well, you will find out. Enjoy!

Soundtrack: A Taste of Freedom by Antti Martikainen

Later that night, over at Nigel's office and soon after Daniel and Aeros as well as Flia went to bed, Hazel sought counsel with her mentor in regards to the situation with Diablo. As expected, the park leader was very concerned with the Carnotaur and the safety of the park.

In the past, they had to work with Theo's adolescence before. They used the Triceratractor to assist with venting Theo's aggression. The park was also quite used to seeing other Residents going about their mating seasons, especially Aladar and Neera's herd. The staff learned to make sure they kept their distance from the spectacles as well as make sure the mating business was kept outside the main hub of the park. Battling rivals and frisky business needed a lot of space. In addition, vets needed to be on site in case any issues happened. More recently, they had to be vigilant when it came to Bruno's Tribe.

However, not once did the Park have to deal with a mating period this intense before. The male elephants were just about on the same level as any of the other Residents in fights. Al and Alyssa were the closest they got to a carnivore mating pair, and they're not quite at the stage of copulating yet.

Nigel agreed with Hazel that they should find a mate for Diablo. That was no surprise. He agreed that locking him away would not do much to abate the tension between the Park and Diablo, no matter how miniscule it is now. As they discussed the specifics of the mission, one issue still remained pressing for the leader in-training.

"So what's the verdict?"

"Oh it's simple," Nigel told the woman who sat at the chair in front of his desk. "You're still going to the Late Cretaceous."

"Yeah but what about the issue with time travel?" she pressed. "I mean, as far as we know, the area I first arrived in years ago was the best spot to look for Carnotaurs like Diablo. We can't exactly rely on fossil evidence. He's basically a new species."

"Yes that's true."

Hazel organized the thoughts in her mind. Other than the problem of finding a good spot to find a Carnotaur like Diablo, the issue lay with the timing. She stood up and started to pace in front of his desk. "I already spoke to Neera and some other members of the Valley Herd about it. They said the Carnotaurs were more commonplace over a mountain range west of where I first encountered them years ago. The only problem is the time period. I mean, we can't just pop in when my younger self comes in."

Nigel gave her a schooling gaze. "You're overthinking this."

"I mean, think about the complications!" she proceeded on with her worrisome tirade, ignoring her mentor's response. "And what if what they said isn't right if we were to come in at a different time period?"

"Hazel, relax," he tried again to make her stop.

This time, she listened. Realizing the state she was in, she took her seat once again. Hazel did it again with her overreacting. While she is experienced with time travel, there was always the issue with running into time-related issues, especially running into her past self. True, they could adjust the coordinates from long ago so she could arrive a little later or a little earlier, but there was the risk of running into the wrong individuals.

She also worried that the time period she came in the first time was the only time the Carnotaurs were that big and the most similar to Diablo. The only coordinates they had to go off of were the coordinates she used when she went on her first solo mission. What if they arrived too early that the Carnotaurs were a different species than Diablo? If they brought back a female that was remotely different from Diablo, they may not be compatible with each other.

"Like I said," Nigel began to explain properly, "you're overthinking this. "Yes, you're right. We can't come in when your younger self arrives. And it's a valid concern that coming in too early would not go well with the rescue as you may not find what you're looking for. How about we go for a time period that is generally close to the first meteor strike yet early enough to not warrant a risk of messing with the time stream?"

"Is that okay?" replied the worried Hazel. "What if Diablo's species is not, well, fully evolved?"

"You underestimate the complexity of evolution. Millions of years is indeed a lot of time for significant changes to happen in a species. But an even shorter time period will have changes in evolution still, but at a smaller scale. So how about a couple hundred years? 200 to be exact. There shouldn't be any significant changes then. Sure, the landscape will look a little different than when you first arrived, but it should more or less match our friends' descriptions. Also, remember when I told you the situation with Martha when she had trouble fitting in the park? At first, we thought she wasn't used to the food in our time. I had to go back a little before Martha's rescue moment just to do my search for the grasses. The creatures back then weren't too different than the ones I saw when I rescued Martha. You won't have anything to worry about."

Hazel paused. Of course, why didn't she see that? Minute changes in the time period shouldn't do much to a species, perhaps change their appearance slightly but not at a grand scale. The mammoths Nigel saw when he got those grasses weren't different from the ones he saw when he saw Martha and her dead sister.

She wanted to smack herself. The elation of Daniel's flight graduation and the stress of Diablo's mating season were messing with her logic. She must have appeared stupid in front of Nigel during her tirade.

"I...guess that could work," she sighed, trying to keep a straight face despite the embarrassment she made. "We wouldn't have to worry about encountering our friends at the wrong time and we're practically unknown by then."

"Right. Just be careful not to leave anything important by then. Wouldn't want it being discovered by the wrong individuals. Just as a precaution."

Hazel brushed a strand of her bangs to the side and positioned it behind an ear. "Right right, I know. Can you please send me the coordinates of the first time I went there? I can edit it to reflect 200 years prior."

He made a brushing motion with a hand. "No need. I can fix it up for you."

She nodded in relief. That took care of that problem. "Ah even better. Thanks."

Hazel stood from her chair and moved away to set it aside. Nigel began to take notes on the tasks he needed to do to prepare the rescue. As they prepared, the two of them discussed another topic regarding the rescue. Nigel had things he needed to work on back at the park and while the rest of the Crew and their recruits were preoccupied with other tasks, or were not ready yet, Hazel would need to be the one in charge.

That was nothing new to Hazel. It wouldn't be the first time she did something by herself. Well, herself and Flia for that matter. Since it was a familiar area for the pterosaur, traversing that place should be a breeze. But now they're not quite alone anymore.

"Are you planning on bringing Daniel and Aeros with you?"

Hazel shrugged and smiled. "Well that was the general idea. I figured since they're allowed to go on rescues now, it might as well be this one."

The acknowledged Nigel was glad of the development. "Good, good. I'm glad you're thinking ahead. You know, this program we came up with was a good idea. The new recruits are progressing well in their curriculum. It's only a matter of time before we get through all of them."

The woman watched him, curious as to what his plan was regarding this new program. The Park doesn't get new recruits all the time and only a few people decide to retire from the job, but that's at random times. Everybody was different. The frequency of the program is affected by who is interested and who would join the Park's ranks.

"Are we planning on doing this again next year?" she asked.

"Oh yes, we'll send notices out. With that new portion of the park, there will be more people needing some training. Although, there may come a time when we need to put the program on pause if there aren't too many people interested in the idea, or if we don't recruit for a while. Just a heads up."

Hazel was fine with that. While she had a good experience with teaching Daniel in the beginning, it wouldn't be a bad thing if the program was put on pause for a while. The growth and reduction in the roster coincides with it. Besides, she could use that time to work on other things. Perhaps even come up with more ideas for the park.

"Okay. Good deal."

"You did well, by the way. Training Daniel."

She felt her stomach jump at that. She wasn't quite teacher material in her view. Her primary reason came from the flight training. She did her best with explaining everything to Daniel, yet he had trouble with the process. She worried the way she was saying it wasn't cutting it for him. She also had her own way of doing things and that may not agree with everybody.

Then again, if Nigel was impressed with how she did things, then she did well regardless.

"Oh, thanks. He was a joy to train. He's certainly come far since he came here. Although the flight training was the most difficult part for him."

Nigel chuckled at that. Like mostly everyone in the Park, he too caught wind of Daniel's slip-ups. "Right, I can agree with that."

"Am I going to train other people?"

He took a moment to think about that. While Hazel wouldn't mind teaching others, she honestly felt she needed a bit of a break from it. Too much teaching and she would burn out.

Thankfully, the answer Nigel gave relieved her.

"Hm...I think for now, leave the training bits to your team and the rest of us. Besides, Daniel needs to learn the ropes on going on real rescue missions. Who better to teach him than you?"

Hazel felt a tinge of excitement. The fact that she will continue teaching Daniel was something she had no argument against. Needless to say, she was quite pleased about that. With this being his first rescue, he'll need to be shown the ropes. This also meant she wouldn't have to be the only one going on a solo mission anymore, solo as in only human.

Not to mention get a better look at him.

"Shut up!" she scolded herself. "Now's not the time for that!"

"Okay, fine by me," she replied, hiding her strained eagerness.

"Oh and one last thing before you go," said Nigel. The woman eyed him intently on the last little detail. "I'm going to be absent for a while. I'm taking Hanna out on a field trip. We'll probably be out for at most a week. Perhaps two."

Brow raised, she wondered about what sort of trip he was taking her younger sibling. "Oh? What for?"

Nigel began to store away the papers on his desk for the night into drawers and bins. "Oh you know. Educational purposes. Can't leave her out on time travel tutoring when the other recruits are going through it."

Hazel squinted. Something didn't seem right about that answer. For as long as she's known Nigel, an answer like that most likely meant some other hidden agenda. Knowing from prior experience, she's gotten quite accustomed to his speech. "I know you Nigel. Something's up. Are you sure this is a field trip and not a secret rescue mission?"

The man stopped. He quickly went up to her with an indifferent expression. "Well, if it is a rescue mission, I wouldn't hesitate to go on one."

The Asian snapped. "Nigel! Hanna's not ready for that kind of thing!"

He let out a light laugh. "Well, you weren't either when you were about her age. Don't worry, if it comes to a rescue mission, I won't let her do any dangerous tasks. Also, we'll have good escorts with us in case something goes wrong. We'll be fine."

Hazel thought about that and sighed. She rubbed the bridge of her nose with her index and thumb. With the improvements they made around the park, especially on rescue preparations and increased safety, rescue missions and field trips should be relatively safer. Of course, that meant the possibility of encountering danger.

Then again, Nigel has been in tight situations before, especially when Hazel tagged along. If this is just a regular field trip, there shouldn't be a problem. But if it is a rescue mission, Nigel had better watch Hanna. Other than her own fury if Hanna got hurt, he would have to worry about the wrath of her own mother.

This would also be a learning lesson for Hanna. It would be a good way for her to see another side of park life as well as get some more hands on learning. It would also serve as a way for her to learn about the dangers of rescues, if their time in Temporary Park didn't remind her.

"Alright, fine. Tutor session or not, please keep her safe."

"Don't worry. I will," he reassured her. "Now, you best run along. You've got a big day tomorrow."

A big day indeed. With the plans now set, the two of them parted ways for the night. Even though they were preparing for bed, they both needed to make plans on how to prepare for the tasks ahead. For Hazel, this meant packing needed supplies for the trip to the Late Cretaceous. With Daniel and Aeros now partners, and them working together with veterans like herself and Flia, the mission should go rather quickly and efficiently.

At least, she hoped it would.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The word "busy" would be an understatement to describe the state of the area around the Holding Pens that morning. It was crazy. Employees went back and forth with preparing the Holding Pens for the upcoming rescue, as well as preparing a few extra in case other unplanned rescues come in through the portals.

Having already eaten a hearty breakfast consisting of a bacon and egg sandwich with an apple, and prepared his bag for the trip, Daniel made his way through the busy area. From what he was told, Daniel learned that Nigel had a knack for rescuing other creatures in addition to his targets from his missions. And as of late, Hazel was the same as well. With the rescue missions now back in full swing, the entirety of the Park wanted to cover all their bases. And thanks to the 2 year construction, they've certainly been upgraded.

The 4 Holding Pens were wooden bars, with the exception of the walkways above them. They all lined up in a row, but they were all connected by an enclosed pathway in front of them. Any rescuer coming through the portal could go left or right and choose the pen they wanted to go to. Employees on the walkways can adjust the fences by releasing levers to cause a separate wooden barrier to come down below, thus herding the rescue towards the intended pen. The pens themselves were large enough to accommodate something as large as a Giganotosaurus and the bars were close enough to prevent the smallest creatures from squeezing through. Though any creature that could be held by hand would have no need for a Holding Pen, if need be.

The Holding Pens are there, just in case. Nowadays, the rescues could just come to the Park a little bit outside the Holding Pens. The newly updated feature in the Time Poles allows the user to change the location from the Holding Pens to outside it or even outside the Hub where the Main Time Poles were set up. Reason being is because it all depended on the type of creature they are bringing in.

If the creatures are too big for the Holding Pens, they could be ported outside the Holding Pens or towards the vast valley beyond.

If the creatures were too fast or uncontrolled, they could cause chaos in the park if they are not rounded up properly. The same went if they were too dangerous to be introduced to the rest of the Park. Such an example applied to a female Carnotaurus in Heat.

He hoped they would go for a female Carnotaurus only. This mission meant dealing with the dangers of the past and deviating from the goal would certainly eat up their time there. As long as it benefited the progress to the end goal, he would take it. That was how he always rolled. He couldn't understand why Nigel would risk his neck to save other creatures when they weren't the end goal. It just didn't sound very efficient.

Daniel was tense. More specifically, he was excited he was about to witness the wonders of Time Travel and go to another time and apprehensive because he wasn't sure what he was going to encounter. Judging from the stories he heard, anything could happen. And then there was the matter of his true mission. He needed to record his trip.

He already asked Hazel if he could record his rescue via his phone. His trainer said he could, but it wasn't necessary as they were being given a couple of Go Pros to place on their person. With the rescues coming back on and the prospect of bringing the show back, the Park needed to record everything. The Park still had its cameramen, but for now, they wanted to see how the results would fare with just Go Pros. The users could also manually control the cameras so they wouldn't have to be on all the time.

While he was prepared to record his trip and planned on somehow retrieving the other footage from the GoPros later, he had a nagging feeling in his mind. Something in his head was telling him not to go through his plan. His true mission was to expose the Park and report back to the SAGES. Unfortunately, with his new experiences in the Park, he wasn't sure what to do. This place offered so much to him, a chance to learn about a secret world where humans and creatures lived together as well as traveling to different times to learn and save others. The prodding bugged him throughout the night; he figured he would know what to do once he was already in the rescue.

Daniel placed his GoPro in one of his vest pockets. It was attached to an extendable stick that allowed for bringing the camera out himself (plus extending it for better height), however, he was also given a couple of special velcro pads he could attach on his clothing. Unlike most velcro, these were quite easy to remove and were amiable to fabric. He was quite curious about the name of the company that manufactured these. As for Hazel, she placed her GoPro on one of her bag straps.

With the camera now set, he made his way towards the front of the Holding Pens where he was told to meet Hazel, Flia, and Aeros. The woman was checking all of their supplies on an already prepared jeep. Next to her was none other than Marcus, who was discussing with her on a matter Daniel was not aware of. The Pteranodons next to them were waiting on their partners, though they seemed to be rather uncomfortable at the moment.

Other than being outfitted with their saddles, the two flyers had a black strap connected to a small black box attached on their left legs.

Curious as to what they were, he approached the small group. His arrival prompted Marcus to explain what he was telling Hazel. The two of them were being given two new pieces of technology to test out. They were two tracking beacons and the small remote tracker that he had in his hand. It was a little bigger than a large smartphone, with a circular screen in the middle. The interface was green and lined with a grid. There were several buttons below it to adjust the settings.

The remote he was observing was a remote radar that tracked the signals of the tracking beacons Flia and Aeros wore. With the start of the Rescue Auditions, the engineers were crafting different pieces of technology that would make rescues easier as well as making improvements to knick knacks the Park had. This one allowed a candidate to keep track of their partner's whereabouts in case they are separated for whatever reason. While their partners had their ways of finding their human companions (flight, smell, etc.), the humans needed a way to find them.

This rescue was a good opportunity to test them out. The radar had a limit of 30 miles or so. If they wander past that limit, the radar will not pick up the signals.

"It feels really weird," Flia commented as she lifted her leg up to show off the waterproof box. She then flexed her talons to adjust to the new feeling. "And kind of snug."

Aeros made an amusing snort. "Says the one who said wearing these saddle things takes some getting used to."

The female squawked in reply. "Hey, I'm just saying."

"Relax guys. It's just for this mission. We're just testing them out," Hazel added to that.

Having already retrieved the bag Daniel packed, the head engineer hauled it into the back of the jeep on top of the other supplies before turning to say his own answer. "Besides, like you said. You'll get used to it. We're just taking measures to keep everybody together. If you guys find you like it, you can keep using it. If not, that's fine too. Regardless, this is just a field test, so take care not to lose them."

"We'll make sure not to," Daniel remarked. Looking over at Aeros, he could see how stiff he was being with the tracker. He could already tell he wasn't a big fan of it. Something was telling him this was the one and only time they will use those things. The same could be said for Flia, though the discomfort was more pronounced with her.

Once they bid Marcus farewell as he needed to check on the Main Time Poles in the other direction, Hazel started to debrief them on the mission. He could tell she was pumped for this trip, especially since this related to the safety of everyone in the Park.

"Alright. So a quick rundown. We're looking for a Carnotaurus around the same size as Diablo, specifically a female. They're smaller than the males, so let's be sure to find one that fits that size description. Their horns are smaller and curve upward too. While females can come in different colors, they'll have black backs when they're in Heat. And just like Diablo, they're very aggressive."

"I've only seen a few Carnotaurus with black backs before," Flia commented, one tiny finger touching the bottom of her beak as she remembered her experiences, "though I've never taken the time to study them. For obvious reasons."

"Well now we know," Aeros offhandedly said.

"Judging by the state Diablo is in," the woman got their attention back, "we don't have a lot of time before he really loses it. So let's spend at most 2 days on the lookout. If we don't find anything, we'll come back here and regroup. Any questions?"

Daniel raised a hand. "Yes, I have one. What should we expect when we go back in time? Any sorts of creatures we should watch out for?"

"Well considering prior experience going there," she started, "I'd say expect the unexpected. I can't give a definite answer on what you'll encounter as we've encountered new species along the way. Though if there is one carnivore you should keep an eye out for, I guess it would be Velociraptors. And not the Jurassic Park kind."

The man felt his stomach drop. He remembered reading about the modern iterations of Velociraptors. They were smaller than their movie counterparts, but just as deadly. They were like wolves, except smaller , faster, and equipped with deadly claws.

Going back in time, Daniel knew he needed to be alert of his surroundings. Anything could jump them, and they had limited forms of defense. Hazel was lucky to have her friends to protect her as well as the protection of a large group of creatures on her journeys. Right now, they only had their partners, whatever their weapons are, and this jeep.

Daniel brought a stun gun Ellis checked recently and had his handy collapsible bo staff on him. As for Hazel, rather than use a gun, she had a gilded dagger strapped on her belt. He wasn't sure if such a weapon would be effective in a dinosaur fight, but then again, this was Hazel and this very weapon helped her in the past. Plus, she had martial arts training so she could hold her own.

The rookie let out a breath and replied with sarcastic glee. "Wonderful. Raptors."

Flia grimaced and shuddered. "I never thought I'd encounter those things again. They're a pain in the rear. I can't recall the number of times they got the jump on me before."

The male next to her grumbled. "I can attest to that. Those Troodons jumped me several times in the past."

"Guys, we need to focus," Hazel said, getting their attention again.

She cleared her throat and placed a hand on her hip. "Alright. We have our objective. Find a female Carnotaurus then come back. We good?"

The sounds of agreement from her group signaled the acknowledgement of the goal. She nodded and made her way towards the jeep.

"Good. Let's move out!"

Daniel followed after her and situated himself in the vehicle. Being more experienced with rescue missions, Hazel volunteered to do the driving. Their seatbelts fastened and their supplies secure, she outstretched her arm and gave the employees behind them a thumb's up.

The commotion in the back went off once again. The two poles situated just a few yards in front of them blinked blue. The Pteranodons that flanked the jeep spread their wings and prepared for takeoff.

It all happened so quickly. Where there was once the view of a forest was then covered by a flash of light. Daniel closed his eyes tightly in reaction to the light. Though, after recovering and looking over at Hazel, she didn't seem to be affected. A large circular window floated in front of them, showing not scenery from this valley, but of a lush grassland with tropical vegetation.

He felt his gut knot. This was it. His first trip into the past. Looking down at his GoPro, he saw it was already on as there was a blue light at the top of the device. It had apparently recorded the whole debriefing. He then grabbed his phone and began to take his first few pictures.

Hazel pressed on the pedal and the jeep drove off towards the portal. The flyers flanking them took off and flew through the temporal window, their forms disappearing into the landscape on the other side. Soon after, the vehicle made contact with the portal.

Going through the portal was an odd sensation to Daniel. His body felt as if it went through a water surface as it had a similar feel to it. Only, he was not wet. His skin still tickled from the feel of the portal, almost like water or soap touched him. Except it wasn't water he went through. It was controlled, bent, light energy of some kind.

Gone was the landscape of the Park Valley when they went through the portal. Now, they were in a dinosaurian paradise. It was mostly a grassy plain, but with tropical plants and a few patches of water. The temperature was warmer than in the valley; it was very muggy and a little bug infested. He had to swat a few insects that landed on his arm, though he wasn't sure if he should feel bad as they were technically prehistoric relics. Looking around, he saw he was literally in another world. If it weren't for the pictures he was taking and the Go Pro that was already running, he would have doubted his own claims.

For the first couple of hours, they drove through the Late Cretaceous landscape. For it being morning and partly cloudy, the colors of the scenery made it quite vibrant. As they drove, they caught the eye of several meandering dinosaurs. The drivers didn't stop to talk to them, Daniel could only imagine what was running through their minds when they saw an outlandish contraption crossing their path. They were on a mission and they weren't there to be interviewed. Although, the agent couldn't help but snap photos of them as they went along. The trip itself was already clear-cut evidence to put into his report.

Except for the occasional QA about certain creatures, the drive was mostly quiet. Both of them had to keep an eye out for signs of a carnivore attacking, whether it was a carnivore chasing them, just minding its own business, or hunting down prey. It was easier said than done when it came to the green-clustered areas. They could be hiding anywhere.

Daniel was in charge of the remote radar as Hazel was busy with driving. He took a look at it every now and then. Marcus was right, it was like a radar. The tracking beacons Flia and Aeros wore sent the signals to the device. Like a radar, it showed three signals, one red, one blue, and one yellow. The red and blue signals came from both the north and east parts of the circular screen. The signals they emitted created a ripple from those directions. Those represented either Flia or Aeros, while the yellow dot that stayed in the middle represented the remote itself. Daniel surmised they were a few miles out, hence why the radar was still able to pick them up.

Eventually, the rookie thought it would be a good idea to break the silence. The drive was beginning to become boring. He asked Hazel about the status of the park in a lot of aspects. Other than the usual goings on, a few of the other rookies were nearing their exam dates, especially Anneli. He inquired what they had planned for her test, but the response he got was vague. Because Hazel wasn't tutoring her, she wasn't aware of any hints regarding the test. Either that, or the woman was playing up the rules regarding the program and wasn't giving out any info to upkeep the secrecy.

Daniel encountered Anneli a few times, and while they are friendly towards each other, they're not exactly best friends. Just amiable co-workers. Though that girl was spending a lot of time around that Allosaur named Broken Jaw. She'll pass her test, whatever it entails.

Then, Daniel decided to ask her questions regarding her first adventure. While they are not exactly in the same moment they were in when the first meteor struck, he thought it would be a good idea to get her insight on the area so he would know better on what to keep an eye on...as well as learn more about her. He heard a few things about that first adventure, but thought it would also be a good idea to get her perspective on it. The topic was something she was glad to talk about, though there seemed to be details where she had a hint of insecurity on her features.

The first thing he asked was how she was able to outrun a pack of raptors on her first venture. Hazel claimed she was a fast runner, but not fast enough to outrun dromaeosaurs. She claimed they were merely inspecting her and taking warning shots to check her defenses, much like any creature would if they saw something new. She took a lot of time to think about it after her venture there and that was the answer she decided on. She had a point, humans can't outrun fast runners like them.

One topic that sparked her uneasiness was on an Iguanodon named Kron, whom Daniel learned was the Valley Herd's previous leader as well as Neera's older brother. In his youth, he was much like Aladar as he was more welcoming and compassionate to those around him. He was a budding leader and was doing a fairly good job at it. Then, tragedy struck when his mentor was killed. Seeing his death and losing herd members along the way hardened him to the point where he became cold and arrogant. When his leadership was questioned, he didn't hesitate to put those oppressors in their place. Hazel and Aladar were among his targets. It was that same arrogance that led to his downfall.

Daniel may not have been there to see it all, but judging from what he was hearing, Kron had his own take when it came to leading the herd. While rushing the herd ahead, leaving Hazel's friends behind, when they were being chased by carnivores was a dick move to most individuals, he could see the logic in that action. Logically speaking, the herd would get a headstart and distract the predators.

Though he shuddered at the thought. It was a cruel and unfortunate concept. But he could understand what the former leader was going through. He was making hard decisions on the spot. Those were desperate times. If the herd were any slower, the predators could catch up to them or they would die before they got to the Nesting Grounds. In a way, he did value the herd's safety.

Hazel also mentioned Aladar's leadership in his first year as alpha; the herd slowed to allow the slower ones to keep up or help those get back in line. Again, Daniel saw the logic in that, but it did leave them in a slightly more vulnerable position during those times.

It was like seeing two different sides of the spectrum. He saw the advantages and disadvantages in the leadership styles. To him, it was quite interesting to think about.

Seeing that Hazel was beginning to feel uncomfortable talking about the former leader, Daniel decided to move the topic onto Diablo in hopes of getting to a more related topic on the mission. Unfortunately, he didn't expect that to yield more discomfort.

"So I've heard a few things about Diablo, and you and your friends," he said. It was true, he was told a few things about the Carnotaur and Hazel and her friend's involvement, courtesy of Nigel. He just wanted to get her view of it.

Hazel cringed. He really did not think the topic would be that bad. "Oh, did you now?"

"Well, bits and pieces. Nigel told me you rescued him from falling off a canyon or something like that. He also mentioned that part where he caused the second breakout. But other than that, he told me to ask you about your perspective on the matter. Obviously, from that radio conversation yesterday, you have a history with him."

The Asian sighed. "Well, you're right. We do. When my friends and I first met Diablo, he and his former mate, Xenaya, had been driven out of their usual territory because of the first meteor. They were tailing the herd during the second half of the migration to the Nesting Grounds. After my friends and I got separated from the Herd, either being slow, wanting to stay with them as was the case with Aladar, or in my case, getting kicked out because I questioned the leader at the time, we took refuge in a nearby cave system. Another individual was with us there. His name was Bruton."

He eyed her with intent. He had not heard that name before. "Bruton?"

"He's what you would call the Herd's first lieutenant. He was injured by those same Carnotaurs and got left behind. Let's just say the leader wasn't too pleased with him leading the carnivores to the Herd, even though it was unintentional. He was just trying to warn them all."

Once again, they were back on the subject regarding Kron. The mention of carnivores chasing after the Herd near the end of the migration now made sense. It was Diablo and his mate that were tailing them. He now understood why Kron lost his temper at the time, and why he sped the herd along while leaving the slower ones behind. And that prompted Aladar and Hazel to get on his case on his leadership. Trying to warn the populace but having to upset the leader like that was not good either.

Again, it was a difficult situation.

"So what happened?" he inquired still.

Hazel shifted her shoulders, discomfort still clear on her features. "Well, we stayed in that cave system to escape the rain. But while we were there, we got ambushed."

"By Diablo and Xenaya."

She nodded. "Right. We did our best in escaping. Aladar was about to be killed on the spot. I managed to distract them so he could escape. It was then that Bruton stepped in to hold them off."

Hazel paused, her face taking on a more pensive look. "He…knocked down one of the cave pillars, which caused the cave ceiling to fall. He and Xenaya didn't survive."

Daniel felt something stab his heart. That's what happened to Diablo's mate. He thought about how he felt seeing her die like that. It must have been gut-wrenching, seeing the one he loved be crushed and be unable to do a thing about it. The human sympathized with him; he knew all too well what it was like to lose a loved one.

"That's why Diablo was mad at you and your friends," he realized. "You were involved in his mate's death."

The woman blinked and made a grave nod. "That's…correct. But we didn't kill her. Though, at the time, we were doing what we needed to do in order to survive. I suppose out of all of us that should take the blame, it should be me."

He blinked. Hazel? Why is she wanting all the blame to be on her? "Why is that?"

He saw her grip the steering wheel tightly. She shut her eyes for a moment, he wasn't sure if she was blinking away tears or just trying to hide the guilt. "Well, when they were about to kill Aladar, I threw my dagger at Xenaya…and blinded her in one eye. And with Bruton coming in, that gave Aladar enough time to escape. That didn't kill her."

She took a deep breath. Sorrow was clear in her expression now, which was also mixed with anger. "Diablo saw me standing over her corpse. My Communicator at the time was just a prototype. It couldn't translate most carnivore speeches. Well, my friends couldn't understand their conversations either. They were just angry roars. It was probably a spur of the moment for them or it was to prevent their prey from grasping their plans, I don't know. Whatever the case, I couldn't save her. Had things been different, maybe we could have helped them some other way. I could have brought her AND Diablo to Prehistoric Park. But no…it just happened."

So that's why. Hazel was doing her best to protect her friends. She attacked Xenaya, blinding her. And with Bruton's involvement, that resulted in her death. While the woman was trying to save those she cared about, she also wanted to save the predator couple.

Because of the situation of the cave collapsing, being outgunned, and having a Communicator that wouldn't allow her to properly speak to them, she was unable to save Xenaya and Bruton. When she was finally able to communicate with Diablo after returning to the Park, she learned of his view of the situation. The fact that she had a hand in her death haunted her.

But it was like she said, she didn't die by her hand. It was Bruton that delivered the final blow. Daniel couldn't blame her, and he certainly couldn't blame Diablo and the others in that fight either. The situation was precarious.

He swallowed, wetting his dry throat. "Well, it wasn't your fault," he said, the sorrowful woman now staring at him. "The situation was out of your control. Had you tried to save her, you would have been killed too, either by them or the falling rocks. And like you said, the Communicator you had wasn't fully upgraded. Who knows, they could have been in a primal state of mind where they were driven by madness due to hunger. There was nothing you could do."

He hoped that was enough for her. Had he been in her place at the time, there wasn't anything he could do for Bruton and Xenaya. He would have died too if he tried to save them both.

As an agent in the field, Daniel came across situations where he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He had to choose whatever was best for the mission, but that also meant he came across targets that had sentimental agendas of their own. A small number of them did what they did because they had families that were desperate for money or food.

He felt for them. They just did what they thought was right to help their loved ones. But they were all corrupt at the same time. For that, he had to do them in. Still, had the situation been any different and there was a way to steer them from the corruption, he could have spared them the authorities. In today's world, giving mercy depended on the situation. He did what he had to do. And for that, he would forever be haunted by the decisions he made.

Daniel placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze. "What's done is done. Diablo's calmed down and you and him settled your differences. Now you're doing your best to help him. You two aren't the same individuals as before."

She was quiet for a moment, but then nodded and smiled. "You're right. We're here to fix things. Thanks Daniel."

He released her. "Don't mention it."

A frown creased his features. "Besides, I can sympathize with Diablo."

Hazel tore her attention from the drive to him again. Wonder was clear on her.

"I've…had my share of losses and they tore me up for a long time," he strained at the reply, the memories coming back to him.

"What happened?" she asked.

Before he could come up with a proper reply, a screech brought their attention forward. Coming up from the northernmost direction were both Aeros and Flia. The two of them must have regrouped during their conversation.

The Pteranodons hovered above and in front of the vehicle. Hazel pressed hard on the brakes. The jeep slowed to a stop, dirt and grass kicked up at the sudden motion. Now idle, the humans gazed up at the worried pterosaurs.

"What's going on?" Hazel was the first to ask.

"We've got a pack of Velociraptors up ahead," Flia replied urgently. "They're attacking a group of innocents."

Hazel's demeanor took on a more serious turn. "How far are they?"

It was then that they all heard faint rasping and roars in the air. The Asian had to switch the jeep off just to hear them. The familiar screeches of a raptor sounded off in the air. Daniel felt his blood run cold. In his youth, he did see the Jurassic Park movies. They frightened him when he was little, all because of the amount of carnage they could do to prey. Of all the things those movies did to dinosaurs, one thing they got right was how raptors sounded.

Now that he was about to see them in real life, he felt even more unnerved. He and Hazel had limited forms of defense. If they came across them, and if they made a wrong move, they were dead.

"Not very far," Aeros deadpanned.

Hazel took a moment to think about that. He hoped she was thinking of a way to avoid them. They would need to take a different direction to go around them. The sooner the better as those fast things could get them if they weren't out of there ASAP.

Unfortunately, Hazel had other ideas.

"Good on us then."

Daniel felt the dread go up his skin. He was thrown back on his seat when Hazel floored the pedal. As they sped forward, he grasped his seatbelt and turned to the insane woman.

"What are you doing!?" he demanded.

"What do you think it is I'm doing? I'm going to help!"

"But you said our objective is to save a female Carnotaurus! Not anything else!"

"I did!" she blurted out. "But this is on the way, right? One additional rescue won't hurt. Besides, we've got additional holding pens. We can take them."

Daniel shook his head. This was exactly what he was afraid of. Now their time was going to be eaten up by a random rescue like this! "No, you said a female Carnotaurus and that was it! We stick to the mission! This is just a distraction!"

It was a few minutes in when they finally reached the source of the cries. The battle was up ahead, just several yards from where they were parked. The predators were so preoccupied with their hunt that they weren't aware of the humans' presence.

Gone were the trees and ferns of the plains. Now there were only grasses that went past their knees. The forests looked to be about a few miles out on each side. This was basically a large glade with limited places to hide. Well, unless you were the size of a Velociraptor and were skilled in stealth. Here, anyone with speed on their side had an advantage.

From his crash course with Hazel weeks prior, Daniel knew Velociraptors were mostly based in eastern Asia. Seeing them in a setting like this was just off-putting. They were nowhere in Asia. This wasn't a desert environment. From prior knowledge, the Valley Herd's Nesting Grounds were the same location as Prehistoric Park, meaning they were somewhere in South Africa still.

Now he knew why Hazel told him to expect the unexpected. These raptors must be a new species if they are found all the way in this part of Africa.

The raptors he observed were even more terrifying than the ones he saw in the movies. While they weren't as large as a person, they were small and lithe enough to be considered a threat. Worse yet, they worked as a pack. They all had beige hides, with a few of them having blue markings at the top of their heads or red markings. Were they sexually dimorphic? He also noted that two of them were either red or blue and their markings went all across their backs. He had no idea whether they indicated age or alpha status.

The prey they attacked was a different story. While they were not carnivores or like the fast runners at the Park, they were bipedal. They sported numerous blackish-grey spikes and knobs on their heads like ominous crowns. They looked similar to the Stygimolochs back at the Park, except different. More knobs dotted the tops of their muzzles as well as a large part of their heads. Speaking of which, those parts of their heads seemed to be leveled. The creatures rammed their heads at the attackers or swiped them with those heads or their tails. He saw one of them getting ganged up on by two raptors as they attacked it on the back. One of the other dinosaurs rammed one off, allowing the victim to shake off the other with a quick movement of its body. Judging by how they were attacking and the shape of their heads, they were a species of a Pachycephalosaur.

"I know those are Velociraptors, but what are those other dinosaurs?" he asked the apparent dinosaur expert next to him.

"Dracorex. A group of them," she answered.

The speed of her reply was outstanding. "Dracorex? How'd you know that?"

"Their heads kind of look like dragons and they're Pachycephalosaurs."

Daniel took another look at them. She was right, they did look like dragons in a way. Bipedal dragons.

His observations were cut off when he saw Flia and Aeros swoop in on both sides of the fight. Working together, they made swiping attacks to knock the raptors down as well as peck at them from the air. The distraction they provided allowed a few of the Dracorex to headbutt them on different sides.

"This is crazy," Daniel regarded, tearing his attention from the fight before them for a moment to the girl. One look at her made him realize what she was thinking of doing. "We shouldn't be doing this. What would Nigel think if we did this?"

"Then he'd be quite impressed and would welcome the new additions," she remarked positively.

"But you're risking yourself for something that's not on the agenda!" he retorted. "Why? It's ludicrous!"

It was at that statement that she gave him a glare. He wasn't much of a person to get intimidated easily, unless it was Director Rain or if he were up against a creature that can kill him. But this coming from a girl that was smaller than him? She may be small, but she had a fearsome attitude that put him on edge a bit.

"It's called doing the right thing," she schooled him. "We can't leave them like this. Besides, it's an opportunity. Think of this as a warm-up before the real thing. Now are you going to help me set up those Time Poles or not?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When everything was all set up, Hazel floored it on the pedal again. The jeep sped towards the brawl, the battle looking as if it were tipping towards the raptor's favor. The two sides numbered at 10 each, and while the Dracorexes were holding their own against the predators, it was only a matter of time before one of them (or all of them) fell prey.

That was especially relevant to the smallest of the herbivores. This one was getting the most attention. It had a light purple hide with blue stripes along the back. It was having trouble keeping up with the raptors and wasn't as fast as the rest of the group. Obviously the Velociraptors chose this individual because it was a youngling. If they couldn't get the whole group, they could get this small one.

At the moment, the youngling was being protected by two larger Dracorex. One had a deep purple hide with black stripes running along the back along with having 1.5 foot horns that adorned the back of the head. The horns after those got smaller as it got to the sides of the head, much like an arch. The second also had large horns at the back of the head but at a smaller degree than the other one. This one had a sapphire blue hide with purple stripes along the back.

Hazel inferred the two larger Dracorex were the parents of the youngling. She couldn't let these raptors have their way with them. They needed to do something. Flia and Aeros were doing rather well with helping the small herd, but it was only a matter of time before the raptors could bite at their wings or legs and pin them down.

Before, she had trouble with Velociraptors. Right now, she was due for some much needed payback.

As the vehicle sped to the battle, Hazel pressed the middle of the steering wheel, causing them to get their attention. Looking over at the outlandish thing, they saw it circle around the whole group, along with seeing something get dragged right behind the vehicle. That very item left behind a red trail and an irresistible smell that would attract any predator's attention.

It was a large slab of blood-drenched meat tied to a rope at the back of the jeep.

The smell of the blood and the sight of the bait did the trick. The predators screeched and came running after it.

"That's it you nutjobs!" Hazel hollered. She made a sharp turn and drove back to where she came. "Come at us!"

Looking next to her, she saw Daniel gripping his seatbelt for dear life. The sight of him trying to calm himself made her want to giggle. It was also a little apparent that he had something against Velociraptors.

Taking a glance at the side mirror, she saw the whole pack coming after them. And further back was the group of Dracorex. After that, she looked ahead. The Time Poles were prepared at the same spot they were in before.

"When I give the signal," she called out to Daniel, "activate the portal!"

They are getting close now. The dromaeosaurs were nipping at their heels, quite literally. Or specifically, they were trying to nip at the large slab of meat that was "running" from them. One of them screeched and made a jump for it, only for the predator to fall hard on the ground and stumble. That only deterred it for a few seconds before it got back on its feet. The pack was at most 5 seconds from being at their position.

As she drove, Hazel felt a sense of nostalgia. She reminisced about her first encounter with a raptor pack. She used her dagger to defend herself, killing one of them, but purely out of self-defense. She was chased for a good distance before Flia came in to rescue her. Back then, it was in a scorching desert, not a lush grassland.

They were about 3 seconds from the Time Poles, the tops of them glowed blue indicating their activation. She glanced at Daniel, who now had the remote ready in one hand. The jeep passed by the threshold.

"NOW!"

Daniel pressed the button and the portal flared to life. Rather than following after the jeep, the raptors disappeared through the temporal window. Hazel circled around towards the front of the portal and saw the whole pack had disappeared. She prompted Daniel to turn the portal off, and that he did.

Where once there was a window leading to another time, now it dissipated out of existence.

Hazel knew the staff at the Park would handle the newcomers well. The Holding Pens should be enough to keep them until they get a proper enclosure as well as a proper introduction to the place. The only thing she needed to worry about later was telling her friends about rescuing raptors. Memories of getting chased or attacked by them haunted them to this day, and seeing a new pack in the park would raise worries, especially among the Valley Herd. Though, perhaps it would be best to have someone alert them while she's still on this rescue. Nigel could do it. He could run it by Aladar and Neera especially since they would need to inform the Herd. She made a note to inform him once things are calmer.

She glanced over at Daniel, who was starting to revert to a reserved state. She chuckled and shot him a grin.

"See? Easy."

"Are all rescues like this?" he uneasily questioned her.

"Eh…not all the time. But that was fun."

"Yeah maybe for you."

"Aw don't worry. You'll get used to it."

They drove back to where the Dracorex were. Rather than flee the scene, they remained there, tending to their wounds. Flia and Aeros soared above them in circles, marking where they were as well as keeping an eye on them. When they stopped just a few yards from them, Hazel noted they all sported minor scratches and a few scrapes. Nothing some rest, bandages, and time wouldn't handle.

In fact, thinking about it, Nigel would most likely not argue against rescuing them either.

The two Pteranodons landed in front of the jeep. Their skin looked quite pristine. They sported no signs of injury from the raptors. That reassured the two of them.

"You guys okay?" she asked them.

"I'm fine. They couldn't attack us while we were in the air," Flia replied smugly.

Aeros gave her a proud look. "One of the perks of having wings."

The two of them satisfied their partners were alright, they approached the Dracorexes. Their Pteranodons followed close to them. Their arrival prompted all the attention onto them, albeit wary and hesitant. Hazel calmly took a step closer to them and spoke to the mass.

"Are you alright? It's a good thing we came in on time. You guys would have been shredded."

While they were all wary, they spoke amongst themselves in whispers. However, the one that stepped forward was the one with the largest horns and the purple hide. Judging by the broad stature of the muscles, she assumed it to be male. And the mass falling behind him meant he was the leader. The second one to approach to his side was the blue one with the almost equally large horns. The slimmer musculature and the smaller horn size gave it away as a female. The leader's mate perhaps.

"Indeed," the purple one answered, his voice as deep as a ravine despite his size. His voice sounded so hard, it could shatter stone as well. "You have our thanks, strange ones. We are strong when we are together, but they nearly overcame us."

"Unlucky for us, one of us couldn't follow orders," one of them voiced out. Looking over to the left, she saw the one that spoke was quite large in stature, the largest in the group. The horns weren't as large as the leader's. He sported a teal hide unlike the rest. His voice was broad and quite low, similar to that of Ben, except someone pressed the fast forward button a couple of times. In her mind, he sounded akin to Patrick Star from the Spongebob series. That certain individual was glaring down at the smallest in the group, who was now making warning snipes at the accuser with his mouth.

"Hey I was told to not go after the one with the bad arm!" the small blue and purple one argued. He seemed quite young, as if he just entered adolescence. "So I didn't! Plus they ganged up on me if you weren't aware!"

The one that flanked him on the other side growled. This one sported a red hide with white stripes that ran along his back and wrapped around his legs. He had two large horns on both sides of his skull that were larger than the rest of the ones he had.

"No, the order was to go after the one with the bad arm! He was easier for you!" he clarified harshly, his voice had a bit of an edgy accent yet was smooth at the same time.

The youngest rolled his eyes and replied in a mocking sort of way. "Well sorry!"

It was then that the white female next to the arguing dinosaurs bellowed loudly. Her arms and legs were dotted with violet spots. Her voice was quite silky yet mature at the same time. "Enough! You're embarrassing us in front of our saviors."

The leader shot a schooling gaze at them, which caused the bickering trio to quiet down. He then returned his attention to the confused group of time travelers. "I apologize for my group's rudeness. It was most uncouth."

Flia smirked and shook her head. "It's quite alright."

Hazel cleared her throat, wanting to press forward. "So uh, who are you guys?"

"We go by many designations, but we are more commonly referred to as 'The Wandering Horns'," went the leader.

The woman whistled. "Oh wow. Cool. But seriously, who are you guys?"

That was when they all looked at each other rather insecurely. Many of them shifted in their place or frowned. A few of them just looked away from her as if they were embarrassed or ashamed. Hazel had a feeling her question may have caused some discomfort.

In response to her question, the female next to the leader spoke up. The tone of her voice was commanding, as if she had many years of battle under her belt. At the same time, it sounded compassionate, like a mother wrapping a warm blanket around a cold child. "I'm sorry, what do you mean by that?"

Curious as to why she would ask such a thing, Hazel was about to clarify when Daniel beat her to it.

"She means, what are your names? What do we call you?"

That was when the leading female began to appear despondent. "Oh…we don't have any names."

The shock that went through the time traveling group was so apparent, it could shatter glass. In fact, this was a complete surprise to them all, especially Hazel.

"You don't!?" she shrieked, her fists clenched and the confusion running mad in her head.

The alpha male calmly denied it. "No. Among our kind, we do not have names. Any one of us that is part of a group, we refer to as comrade, comrade-mate, or in my case, leader."

"Leader-mate for me," the leading female added. "But we also have other titles we refer to each other…personally," she gave her mate a flirty look, one which he returned with a loving gesture in the form of an affectionate nudge on her cheek with his snout.

Hazel placed a hand on her chin. "Hm…well we can't just not call you by a name. It's not our way. Also, names help with identifying each other. It makes things easier. Here, I'll start," she then put her hand on her chest. "My name is Hazel."

Her hand then went to each and every one of her friends. "The purple Pteranodon there is Flia, she's my partner. The male Pteranodon is Aeros. And the guy next to me is Daniel. If you're wondering what me and Daniel are, we're humans."

A Dracorex on the right was the one to answer first. This one seemed more weathered considering the wrinkles and the faded complexion of the colors. He was light brown with splotches of yellow on the body, but mainly on the face. Hazel also saw that his left eye was yellow and a scar ran down it.

"Hu-mans?" he responded in a Scottish accent much like Ilana the Edmontonia. "I cannae say I've ever heard such a thing."

"Well that's because we're not from around here," said Hazel.

"So what are you all doing all the way out here?" Aeros asked next. "Are you migrating?"

"Well…in a way, yes," the alpha female responded. "We are searching for a new purpose."

"A new purpose?" the male Pteranodon inquired. "What do you mean?"

"We are not like other individuals of this land," the alpha male explained. "The raptors you saw band together to take down prey. All of us work together to protect the innocent from creatures like them."

"It's something we chose a long time ago," went his mate. "Our kind usually stick with other herds when migrating. We chose to form a group and go with herds to protect them along the way. It gives us purpose."

"But our last herd scattered due to an ambush," the red one with the two large horns cut in to explain. His expression was fairly troubled. "That was several days ago. Since then, we've been on our own, trying to find another herd to protect. We live by a code of honor. We fight to protect and die to protect. That's our way."

Hazel's face brightened. The realization of the code they spoke of was quite clear to her. "Oh I get it now! You guys are like knights!"

They all eyed the now unusually eccentric human. While they all had no idea what she was referring to, the only one who understood was Daniel, but he was having trouble seeing her view of the comparison.

"Knights?" Flia said, curious about the new term.

"Yeah. Knights are warriors that protect the innocent and follow a code of honor. They always place protecting the weak above other priorities. And judging by your mannerisms, you guys are quite chivalrous," her smile widened to an even bigger grin. "Actually, I may have an idea on what to name you guys."

The naming went on for several minutes. Hazel was very active in the endeavor and thought hard on the perfect names that fit the 10 Dracorex. Daniel was reluctant at first, but he soon joined to help her after some convincing. Flia and Aeros were wise enough to not interfere with the naming as they had no experience with whatever they were talking about, though they did offer some insight on the name choices as they came up. Of course, the naming "ceremony" came with them explaining a bit about their names and their backgrounds.

Seeing as they were all knights and they followed a code of honor, Hazel thought it would be fitting to name them after the fabled Knights of the Round Table from Arthurian legends. Surprisingly enough, Daniel seemed to be an expert on the topic as he spent a lot of time in high school reading up on British literature. The boys were rather easy to name, but the girls were another matter; except for the leader's mate, they had to come up with feminine versions of the knights for their names.

They started off with the youngest. The offspring of the alphas was named Galahad, as he was rather pure and innocent in his demeanor. While not perfect like his namesake, he was quite gallant and had the potential to be a good warrior.

Next came the second youngest. It was a young female with a pink hide and fine purple stripes across her body. She was about a foot taller than young Galahad, but was considered a youngster in the eyes of the group. She was quite vain, especially since she was inspecting her claws and her hide for any signs of injury after their bout with the Velociraptors. The two humans weren't quite sure which name to go for, but Hazel decided to get a little creative. They named her Keeya, which was a play on the name Kay, another one of King Arthur's knights.

The female Dracorex next to little Keeya was much like the elder of the group in terms of loyalty to the leader. She was very loyal and served as the scout. The grey hide and black spots on her back made her perfect for stealth investigations or sneak attacks. Seeing as she was very loyal, Daniel offered to name her Alymera, after the original name, Alymere.

The two Dracorex they came up to were very interesting. They were brothers and they operated as the eyes and ears of the group, almost always working with Alymera. The oldest of the brothers had a deep greenish-yellow hide with a set of horns that were larger than the others on his head in the shape of an arc. The larger horns were on the back and the subsequent horns and knobs after that significantly got smaller, like a steep arc. He was the fastest runner and cousin to the leader. He was also very protective of his younger brother. He was very noble and very protective of his younger brother. Seeing those characteristics, the two humans dubbed him Bors, named after Bors the Younger.

The younger brother of Bors was indeed a conundrum. He was light blue like clear ocean water, but had yellow patches on his back, lighter than his brother, Bors. Unlike the rest of the group, he couldn't talk. Instead, he communicated with barks, growls, whines, and bleats. The mannerisms reminded Hazel of url before they discovered he was a youngster who hadn't learned any words yet. He acted very similarly to a dog. Despite his strange behavior, he was the group's best tracker/sentry as he had a keen sense of smell and excellent hearing. He was funny and adorable, according to Hazel as she enjoyed petting him and scratching him at his back, which seemed to have an itch he had a hard time getting to. Daniel thought it would be fitting to name him Dagonet, not because he looked foolish or crazy, but because he was funny in a good way.

When they came to the elder, the dinosaur was very skeptical of the two. Throughout his life, he had never encountered humans at all; Hazel and Daniel were the first ones he met. While he was grateful they saved his small herd from the raptors, he couldn't make heads or tails out of the humans. The Pteranodons he was familiar with as he encountered flyers before. Daniel convinced him they were there to help and they meant no harm. After getting confirmation from the male leader, the elder proceeded to allow the humans to name him. As one of the leader's earliest companions, was solid and very reliable according to the leader's claims, he was named Lucan.

The next two Dracorex were female twins. They were the older sisters to young Keeya. The one that silenced the bickering male Dracorexes earlier, who had white scales with hints of violet along her arms and legs, was claimed to be the best female fighter next to the alpha female and was quite fair. She was quite mature with a conservative personality. Although, when Hazel glanced over at the red male beside her, she noticed he couldn't stop looking at her. He appeared to be rather interested and was giving her silent gestures to relax. The female was doing her best not to pay attention to him and was beginning to get a little embarrassed by his attempts, though Hazel couldn't help but think they were romantically involved in a way.

As for the twin, she had a lavender hide with white spots at the base of the tail. She was considered the wisest in the group. Just like her twin sister, she was mature and level-headed. Hazel got creative with their names. The white one she named Pellea, after Pelleas for being fair, and the lavender one she named Parisa, which was a play on the name Pervical, because she seemed to be dedicated to her involvement with her large family.

The next one they came to was the bulky teal-colored male, the strongest of the whole group in terms of strength. He demonstrated his skill when he attempted to overturn the Park jeep that was stationed nearby, much to the horror of the humans. Thankfully, they managed to stop him from fully turning it on its side. Though the show of strength was quite apparent as he managed to use his body to "nudge" the vehicle off two of its wheels. Not only was he strong, but he was also very brave and faithful to the group's cause. Like the red male that was eyeing Pellea, he too had an interest in Parisa, though the matter of whether she reciprocated the interest was a matter of debate as she was good at hiding it, much better than her twin. Daniel officially named him Bedivere.

The three Dracorexes that came next were the most difficult to discern. They were brothers and were similar yet different to each other. The youngest of the trio was hot headed but was called the most athletic. He would butt heads with his eldest brother as they disagreed on a lot of things, especially claiming he saw Pellea first. He had a reddish-orange hide with grey stripes on the legs and back. Like his eldest sibling, he had two horns on both sides of the head, but they curved a little upward like tiny bull horns.

The middle brother was considered the best male fighter of the group, at least in his view. Though perhaps close in level to his elder brother yet not on the same level as the leader, as Lucan described. He was also considered third in command because he was capable of doing basic leadership skills as well as keeping everyone together. He was a little cocky, but good-hearted at the same time. His skin tone was light red, almost coral, and had vertical white stripes along his legs and back. Unlike his brothers, he had two knobs on his snout that were slightly larger than the others in the group.

Then there was the eldest brother. He was the red one that bickered with Galahad and Bedivere earlier. He claimed to be a strategist and thus was named the second in command. His tactical planning proved quite useful in the past and helped them with getting out of difficult situations. He was also personally trained by the alpha male to one day succeed him, something Hazel could relate to. Because he started going on about his accomplishments (and was getting rather proud about it), Pellea had to step in and silence him before it all got to his head.

That was enough for Hazel and Daniel to come up with names for the triplets. The youngest was named Lamorak because of his fiery temper. The middle brother was named Gawain because he seemed quite courteous and humble towards the humans. As for the eldest brother, he was named Tristan, because he was trained to be "the best of the best" as he claimed, much to the annoyance of his siblings and the amusement of Pellea.

Finally, there were the alphas themselves. Hazel had the perfect names reserved for those two. She first ran it by Daniel and was very quick to agree to her idea. When she declared the names to them, their reactions were a little varied, mostly because they wanted to make sure they truly fit them. The female she found liked her name, Elaine, after Elaine of Astolat. As for her mate...he was still making sure.

"So? What do you think?" Hazel asked the alpha male.

The leading Dracorex became contemplative. He let out a low growl, which turned out to be a deep sigh. "Hm…Lancelot. You say he is a mighty warrior among your kind?"

"A legend, yes. He's famous for being the mightiest of his Knights."

That was the kicker for the leader. He nodded and gave her an appreciative smile. He turned his attention to his whole group. "Tis a fine name. What say you all?"

Needless to say, the whole group agreed with him. His mate was happy for her mate and for their large family. It was a large step, breaking an old tradition of being nameless, but it was something they welcomed. Though it may take a while to get used to their new identities.

Hazel was also proud that she gave them names. When she looked over at Daniel, he seemed exhausted with the endeavor, but he also looked pleased with himself. She could tell he rather enjoyed the task, even though it was out of the way.

With the naming now completed, the attention was turned to the newcomers' reason for being there. The one to ask that was none other than Elaine.

"What brings you all out here?"

"We're trying to help a friend of ours. And to do that, we need to find a certain carnivore," Hazel replied.

"To fight?" Lancelot wondered.

"No. To bring with us. It's complicated," she said. With the knights dedicated to protecting the weak from vicious predators or assisting herds with escaping other dangers, she figured mentioning their real reason for being there would complicate their already good relations. Hazel learned keeping a secret like that would spell disaster, as she learned the hard way that one time with the second meteor strike. She decided it would be better to tell them later at a better time. She wasn't keeping the secret forever, she was just delaying it.

"What are you trying to find?" Elaine inquired.

The woman was about to respond properly when Daniel decided to step in and blurt it out. When he did, it sparked mass confusion among the group and a rising annoyance from Hazel. So much for being a little discreet about it.

"We're trying to find a Carnotaurus. More specifically, a female," was what he said.

Lancelot's eyes narrowed, his demeanor becoming skeptical. "You are very strange to want to find a dangerous creature like that. But if you really want to know, they dwell past a group of mountains not far from here. You will just need to cross several caves to get there. But why would your friend need a carnivore like that? Normally, individuals would run from the sight of them, not fight them."

"We're not here to fight," Hazel clarified. "We're here to retrieve."

The leading Dracorex was not sure what to make of that. Escaping from a predator was one thing, but finding one? That was asking for trouble in their perspective. There were going to be more questions coming up, she knew that. Though perhaps the best thing to do at the moment would be to take things one step at a time. For now, telling them they were finding a female Carnotaurus would suffice. The real reason for finding one would come later.

He contemplated that answer. As he thought long and hard on that, he glanced at the entirety of his now-named knights. They were very uneasy and were confused on what to do next. They all had their attention on him as he was the one that would make the final decision.

Making a low growl, he made a response, which had a hint of pensive uneasiness.

"I do not know why you would risk your lives to find a creature that could kill you, but the journey will not be easy. You will need protection. And being from another land, I take it you are not very familiar with this place."

At that statement, Flia lifted a wing up and was about to say something when Hazel quickly elbowed her on the side. The sudden pain made her wince and retract her wing. A quiet groan escaped her throat. One step at a time, that was the plan. Saying they're from another time period will also come later.

"Well we sort of are from around here, we're just not familiar with this specific area" Hazel chuckled sheepishly as she tried to mask her edginess. "We may get easily lost and we're not sure what to expect." She hoped the lie she gave would be enough to convince them.

The female Pteranodon glared at her, both on the sudden attack and the underhanded answer she cooked up. While it was still the truth, Flia was not very agreeable as she wasn't given an earlier notice. Hazel merely ignored her.

"Then it's settled," Lancelot declared. "We shall accompany you."

"That won't be necessary," Aeros tried to decline the offer. "We can handle this ourselves."

"On the contrary, you cannot. The journey there will require going through a cave system and going around territories of other carnivores. We know a shorter route through the caves. We can lead you there."

Hazel smiled. This was a perfect opportunity. Not only do they have a lot of guides, but they have an increased guard. They know their way around this area and they are good at dealing with danger. This was a perfect setup for an expedition.

Not only that, but she started to think of inviting them to live in Prehistoric Park. Considering they were looking for a new purpose, they could find one back at the valley. There were a lot of herds there and the Park would find them quite helpful. There haven't been any native wildlife wandering into the place that posed a danger, thanks to the vigilance of the predators and not many creatures would dare attack something larger than them. However, that didn't mean the Park was covered on all ends. And with the migration to the new Feeding Grounds coming up, they could serve as an extra guard during the big trip.

It had been a while since Hazel thought about the migration. That was coming up pretty soon. The herds would need to migrate through Africa to get to their Feeding Grounds. The Park planned a route for them that avoided civilization and known poacher territories. However, there still remained the issue of the smaller individuals getting attacked by the native wildlife. These "knights" could provide some extra protection.

That is, if they agree to come to the Park.

"Perfect! That's going to help big time," Hazel happily acknowledged. "Hey, after this is all said and done, if you guys are looking into finding a new place, why not come live with us? We're from a far-off valley where food is plentiful, and we all get along. There's enough space for a few herds."

That got their attention. They all seemed interested in the prospect, even the skeptical Lucan.

"Oh? Another valley?" Pellea questioned. "Where would that be?"

The human made a timid laugh. "That's…kind of complicated. We can explain more when we get this mission done."

"Hm...a new home," Lancelot pondered, a claw now scratching the underside of his muzzle. "That is something my group and I need. We are lacking in a purpose right now. We shall think about it."

Hazel nodded. That wasn't a yes, but it wasn't exactly a no either. More like a maybe. Still, she accepted the answer regardless.

"Okay," she said. "Now let's get going."

Just then, they heard rustling coming from the back of the jeep, followed by the clatter of a few items. The humans looked over and saw one of the bags, which turned out to be Hazel's, start to move. The entirety of the group, both native and newcomer, approached the vehicle.

Hazel didn't pack anything that moved. Why would her bag move like…

A sudden realization hit her. She moved towards the jeep and placed her hands on the bag. Grabbing one of the zippers, she yanked it to the side, opening it. She jumped back when she saw the culprits of her bag explode from within the sack.

It was two lemurs; one had pure white fur with a brown patch at the tip of the tail, and the other had yellow, scraggy fur and was quite scrawny.

The two creatures gasped for air and fell on the cushion that was another bag. As they lay there, gasping, Hazel couldn't help but gawk at the stowaways. While she was dominated by pure shock, she was also beginning to become annoyed at the new development.

"Whoa! Okay!" the yellow lemur, Zini, gasped. "Much better."

"I told you we shouldn't have chosen this bag," Aya nagged him, her gasping becoming quieter. "There wasn't much air to begin with. Not to mention we should have chosen something that was softer. I landed on something hard when this thing was pushed on the side."

"Well, I had to choose fast otherwise they would have caught us," the male defended.

The sound of someone clearing their throat stopped the lemurs from their lover's quarrel. The source of it came from the female Pteranodon, but they went pale when they saw the large group staring down at them. Hazel rubbed the bridge of her nose, twice now this has happened to her.

"Oh...oops. Hehe...hi guys," Zini waved slowly.

Zini and Aya, you are so in trouble! Also, it seems like Daniel has something against raptors... ;).

Well this was an interesting chapter. So the mystery creature is Dracorex. All the hints pointed to it.

It lived during the Late Cretaceous (87.5-65 million years ago)

It was discovered in the early 2000's (2004)

It's an herbivore and terrestrial

It's not from Hatzeg Island

It appeared in the media very recently (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom as a statue and in the toy line)

Part of its name involves a place that is popular in the world, but is secret. Only "certain" individuals can access it. The location is popular only in that fictional setting (Hogwarts)

"We have a new weather report. Lightning has struck. I repeat. Lightning has struck." (quote from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows)

As for the character basis, the majority of the Dracorex Knights are based off the main characters from Disney's Gargoyles, a TV show that I grew up with. I'll list down the characters and who they're based off of.

Lancelot - Goliath

Elaine - Elisa but with Demona's colors

Tristan - Brooklyn 1.1

Gawain - Brooklyn 1.2

Lamorak - Brooklyn 1.3

Bedivere - Broadway

Parisa - Angela

Lucan - Hudson

Dagonet - Bronx

Bors - Lexington

*I'm such a huge fan of Brooklyn, hence why he's on there 3x xD. Each of the brothers embodies a different aspect of Brooklyn*

Now for the rest of the Knights. Two of them I based them off my versions of Raven and Starfire from Teen Titans. Long story short, I was trying to create my first fanfiction series revolving around Gargoyles and Teen Titans. I was, and still am, a big fan of both series and wanted to create my own story about them. Most prominent in that series is the relationship between Brooklyn and Raven (yes I paired them up). Unfortunately, that series never flew. I did technically finish the first story but I never wrote it completely online (it's just a physical copy for me). I was young at the time. I imagined Raven's level-headedness would cool down Brooklyn whenever he gets angry, while Brooklyn's leadership and compassion would help Raven open up more. I also had a mind of pairing Starfire with Lexington too.

My version of Raven and Starfire aren't exactly the same as the Titans from the show. In my version, the previous Teen Titans lost their lives after sealing Trigon away nearly 30 years ago. The first Raven, with her last ounce of strength, casted a spell on herself and Starfire (who was hanging by a thread next to her) so they could be reborn in another time because she knew Trigon would return one day. In other words, they were reincarnated. Their "descendants" are two human girls who gained their powers and heritage, thus becoming mutants. They ran away from home as their community rejected people like them. Their journey brought them to New York City, where they hoped they could start anew. Then they meet the Manhattan Clan (the gargoyles) and they go on a lot of adventures (which take place during the Gargoyles main series, just with a few additions). Anyway, like I said, the series never really flew because it involved so much updating to the plot and it became difficult for me.

Pellea - Raven

Keeya - Starfire

As for Alymera and Galahad, they're pure OC's of mine and therefore are not based off anyone.

Some quick lore about Gargoyles that I put into here. Before the main characters came to the modern world, gargoyles don't really have names to identify themselves with. Goliath was the first gargoyle to be named by the humans his clan protected, because of how strong he was and the fact that he towered over everyone else. A gargoyle's purpose is to protect their castle, hence why they are protectors. I compared that with a knight's code of honor and implemented that into the Dracorex Knights. Without something to protect, well they become obsolete in a way.

Anyway, I highly recommend you guys check out Disney's Gargoyles. It's an awesome show and one of the best Disney has ever hosted.

The next note I'm sure you're wondering. If the Knights are based off Arthurian knights of legend, then who is King Arthur? Don't worry, you'll find out later.

As mentioned in the chapter on the location, the coordinates was kind of a "roll of the die" circumstance where they arrive well before Hazel even arrived there. Same place, same period, just 200 years before the events of DaPPA. This reduces the chances of encountering any individuals they're not supposed to meet yet.

While the rescue has only just started, we now have new additions to the park. Velociraptors! Yes, I know I said we wouldn't rescue them, but after some deep thought, we just couldn't leave them out. If anyone would like their OC to be paired with one, please keep in mind of the guidelines of the Partner Program. Because they're recent additions, they're not viable to be in the program just yet but we can take reservations. Marc and I already have two of them named (the alpha male is named Osiris and the alpha female is Innana). More information will be revealed on the raptors later.

Other than that, that's all for now. See you in the next chapter!