AN: I don't normally do music for this story, but here's something to get you guy's psyched up for the awesome battle:

SOUNDTRACK START: Saurian OST - Intraspecific Combat!

The team could only watch on as Terence charged at the dragon, batting it aside, just barely managing to save his sister from the flying predator. Overall, they weren't sure why he had done that - perhaps the bond of siblings still existed, even after all the conflict between the two. Whatever the reason, the tyrant dinosaur was now fighting a fantasy made real, and so far, it was a pretty even fight. The dragon seemed to be unwilling to use its flames, though the group couldn't tell why.

"Why's he so reluctant to use his flames now? He wasn't so reluctant earlier."

"...I think I might know, Michelle."

"Then what is it, Tristan?"

"Well, I know this is not the most reliable source, but Dr. Tanner said that dragons use hydrogen to fly, right?"

"Yes, and that they also use it for fire...you think he's running on empty?"

"That, or he's saving some fuel for a getaway. Odds are, he's trying to weaken Terence so that he won't waste his fuel with unnecessary fire attacks. If he succeeds, then that dragon can roast Terence when he's unable to defend himself, but if he fails, then there's a way out of the battle."

"Either way, he wins to some degree, and we lose."

Suddenly, a loud honking noise alerted the group to the arrival of some of a park security team. Emerging from their jeep, they quickly took stock of the situation. While seeing the dragon was certainly a surprise, they quickly got over it and took aim at the giant flier. However, the fighting prevented any of them from getting a good shot, and eventually, the battle spilled over into where they were located, forcing the team to retreat. As they pulled away, a spare rifle they had forgotten to secure fell off the back of the jeep.

Michelle's eyes instantly fell upon the tranquilizer rifle. Cautiously, she scanned the area, before charging toward the weapon, though always careful to put hard cover between herself and the raging behemoths. The team stared on at her for a moment, confused, before noticing the rifle, and began to circle around the annex to support her. All the while, the giants continued to fight. At one point, she had to role under Terence's tail as the tyrannosaur used it to hit his opponent. Eventually, she reached the rifle. Loading a dart, she took aim, waaited for an opening, and pulled the trigger...except nothing came out. Confused, Michelle opened the gun, and found that it had jammed. Annoyed, she quickly removed the dart, before shaking out the rifle. A loud roar alerted her to the fact that the violence was getting closer to her. Sighing, Michelle backed, and unfortunately stepped on the remains of a fence post. The unstable footing tripped her, sending her hurtling to the ground, while the rifle landed a few feet away.

Groaning in pain and annoyance, the girl sat up, trying to regain her bearings...just in time to notice that the dragon was about to step on her. Fear took hold for a moment, and she was unable to move as the beast backed toward her. Just as the foot came, though, she found herself yanked to the side, out of harm's way.

Turning to the left, she found Tristan staring at her. "You okay?"

"Yeah, fine. You got the rifle?"

"Yes. And don't rush out like that! If you're going to do something stupid, tell someone!"

"Can we save the debating until after the marauding behemoths are dealt with?"

"...Fine. You want to take the shot?"

"You are holding the gun, you shoot it!"

"Okay, okay!"

A hiss refocused the group's attention on the clashing titans. Both now had a few scratches and bruises on each other, but surprisingly, neither appeared to have sustained any serious wounds. What was apparent, however, was that both beasts were growing tired. Even if the group did not intervene, it was unlikely that the fight would last much longer. Soon, one of the creatures would grow too exhausted to fight. Both knew this, and were fighting all the more ferociously to make sure they would not be the one to fall.

The dragon, however, had apparently decided it was time to end things, as it suddenly took to the wing. It used its advantage of flight to circle around Terence, before apparently landing on his back and starting to bite him. Aggravated and hurt, Terence bucked and threw his body around, seemingly to no avail. Eventually, though, the dragon slipped up and leaned too far forward, allowing Terence to grab its neck and hurl it off of him, sending it through some of the fences. Bruised and beaten, but not yet broken, the flying carnivore stood up and roared at Terence, who offered a roar of his own in response.

Suddenly, a dart flew into the giant flier's neck. Confused, it turned to the its right to find Tristan pointing the tranq rifle at it, already primed to fire another shot. For a moment, it readied to attack, but its adrenaline reserves had faded, and the effects of exhaustion and the dart were already taking hold. Utterly spent, the creature collapsed, and soon fell asleep. A moment later, Terence joined his foe in resting, uninterested in fighting any longer.

Taking a deep breath, Tristan lowered the rifle. The fight was finally over. Nearby, the rest of the away team was busy cleaning up the mess, with Michelle already extinguishing one of the fires. Briefly, an under-tranquilized raptor hissed at her, only to get covered in non-toxic extinguisher fluid.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next day, things are going better for the park. The portal annex has been repaired, Terence and Matilda's pen has fixed, an all of the new arrivals are settling in well.

While the hadrosaurs were being introduced to their Western cousins, as were the other herbivores and omnivores, the Dryptosaurus were busy turning a beefalo into lunch. Smiling at the sight, Nigel returned to his jeep and headed over to one of the park's special exhibits.

He soon arrived at a large aviary, built into the side of a mountain. Foliage filled the area, while several workers began to clean up the windows, which had been modified to resist flames. As Nigel came to a halt, the rest of the rescue team, plus Bob and Suzanne, were already staring at the inhabitants. While the two females were hiding away, the male was at the fore front, using his hind limbs to carve claw marks into the trees.

Suzanne couldn't help but stare at the new residents. "I never thought we'd actually see a real dragon. This completely changes everything we've known up until this point in history."

"I just hope he isn't too much of a hassle - we already had to use three of these domes for this one and the other two males we got. The females just seem to go with whichever male they fancy," retorted Bob. "How do we even have pens meant for a dragon?"

"They were included in the park's plans from the beginning, per Tiberius' request," was Nigel's response. "Said it was because he lost a bet with one of his kids."

Sean blushed at the comment. "I didn't think he'd actually do it. It's not like what I did was anything special."

Elise, however, was confused by that statement. "I thought he was just going to let you buy a car if you won that bet."

"He did. This was just a joke part of the bet."

Instantly, Lucas' mind was hooked on this. "Oh, I have to hear about this story."

"Later."

It seems that Prehistoric Park has just rewritten a chapter in the story of life..and owes Dr. tanner an apology.

Next time, the park goes back to just after the Dinosaurs died out to rescue the first ruling mammals

(Shot of the teamcaught between a herd of strange looking herbivores and a bearlike carnivore)

As well as one of our oldest ancestors.

(Shot of the Nigel letting a rodent-like creature sit on his shoulder)

Meanwhile, Bob handles the needs of a fantasy made real.

(Shot of Bob moving some rocks into the dragon's exhibit)

For now, though, everyone is interested in getting to know the park's newest residents...including some individuals the park doesn't know about...

XXXXXX

As the day turned to night, his mates prepared to sleep, but the male Prehistoric Dragon could not rest just yet. Not until he was sure his new territory was free of competitors. Aggressively, he patrolled the area, searching for any rivals that dared to challenge his dominion. Finding none, he returned to the river by the edge of his new domain. True, he had lost to the tyrannosaur, but it seemed that beast stayed away from his territory. He had no ill will toward the tyrant dinosaur, even if one had ultimately killed his mother. that one had long since died to his mother's flames, so his only real source of animosity toward the giant carnivore was natural competition for scarce resources. As long as they stayed out of each other's hunting grounds, the dinosaur's presence could be tolerated.

Movement at the edge of his domain alerted him to the presence of another group of humans. These ones were more tanned in appearance than the first ones he had seen, though he was not unfamiliar with them - they paler skinned ones had brought several over to see him. Oddly, though, they did not react with as much fear to his presence as expected. Why was that?

He soon got his answer as he heard a hissing sound. A moment later, a scent filled his nostrils, vaguely similar to his own. Then, after a moment, a new creature appear. This one looked like a snake, yet despite lacking legs, it did have wings. Additionally, it was covered in feathers, not unlike him. Soon, another emerged, though this one had less developed feathers, and seemed to be furry in appearance. Vaguely, he noted it looked similar to a moth. Finally, a third creature emerged. This one was similar to the first, but had a much drabber color scheme, consisting of black and white instead of primary and secondary colors.

Instantly on the alert, the male attempted to scare off the invaders, but they seemed to have no interest in him. Instead, they made strange sounds to the humans, who responded with similar sounds. The conversation went on for some time, before the two species departed, leaving the male alone.

He waited until the sun had been under the horizon for half an hour, before he too decided to rest.

XXXXX

AN: Well, look, another cliffhanger!

Here's a rescue list. This will be added into the complete rescue list at a later date.

Dryptosaurus: Five males, seven females

Hypsibsema: eleven males, fifteen females

Hadrosaurus: nine males, twelve females

Apatornis: twenty males, twenty nine females

Nodosaurs (Appalachiapelta): four males, seven females

Raptors (Appalachiaraptor): three males, five females

Ceolosaurus: thirteen males, eighteen females

Prehistoric Dragons: three males, six females

Halisaurus: four males, three females

Mosasaurus: two males, three females

Unknown Leptoceraptopsid: six males, six females

Creatures that were not rescued but already lived at the park:

Draconis americanus tex (1 female)

Draconis americanus mex (1 male)

Draconis americanus incognito (1 male)

So, read and review! This is Flameal15k, signing off!