Battle Royale!
Disclaimer: Dinosaur King is owned by Sunrise, Shout Factory, 4kidsTV, and any other company I missed. I own nothing
"Talking"
"Thinking"
"Flashback"
DK
The light of the moon shone over a palace in India. Inside, a young princess called Meena stormed off to her room in anger. She had dark hair, gold bracelets on both her wrists, and was wearing an orange sari with a tan veil around her neck like a scarf. "I am sick of all these rules! Why can I not do what I want?!" She asked angrily before slamming the door.
Her mother, the empress, sighed in annoyance as she stared at the door. "My goodness. That girl gets more stubborn every day. See to it that she does not leave this house." She told the two servants walking beside her.
Meena laid on her bed with her hands over her head as she silently sobbed to herself. She heard the sound of her door open and threw her pillow in the direction of the intruder. "I told you to leave me alone!"
"Kind of hard when we share the same room." Meena recognised the voice and saw a teenage woman with black hair in a ponytail, orange top, turquoise pants with a white cloth wrapped around them, another cloth covering her navel, heart-shaped earrings, necklace with a green gem, and a semi-crown with a red gem on her forehead, remove the pillow from her face.
"My apologies, Zahrah. I didn't know it was you." The young princess apologised to her older sister.
Zahrah put the pillow back on its respective bed and sat down next to her sister, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder "Now, what are you so upset about?"
"It's all these dumb rules!" Meena exclaimed as she got up and went onto the balcony before looking at the full moon. "Someday I'll finally swim in the Ganges."
"That's all? You can go there anytime you want."
"Not just for a regular bath." Meena corrected her sister as she fantasised about the moment like she did many times. "I've heard it said that if one swims towards the sunset in the sacred Ganges River, one's dreams will come true. I just know then I would find the prince I've been dreaming of."
"Meena." Zahrah sighed as she walked onto the balcony. "The story about swimming to the sunset in the Ganges is nothing more than a myth. You need to stop thinking about your fantasies and focus on a real future."
"And what future would that be? You get to become empress, but I have nothing to look forward to. If I can't rule this kingdom, I should at least rule another."
"You're hopeless." Zahrah sighed as she went to her bed and got in.
Meena got into bed as well and waited until her sister was asleep before going back onto the balcony. "If they won't let me go, hmph, then I have no choice but to run away."
Using a vine from the tree outside her bedroom, Meena lowered herself to the ground gently before running to the gate. She tried to push it open, but it was too heavy for her to do alone. She looked around before noticing a sharp rock nearby. Grabbing the stone, she started to dig in front of the gate. "If I cannot go through the door, I shall go under!" She declared as she dug.
She continued on digging until she heard a clank. "Huh?" Moving the dirt away, she came across a capsule. "What is this?" She asked as she grabbed the capsule from the ground. Opening it up, a single card fell to the ground. "Oh!" The card floated to the ground before it was picked up by the wind and glowed.
Out of the glow came a small, mostly light blue Theropod with tiny, yellow horns close to over its eyes, but not exactly. This Dinosaur was a Deltadromeus. "Agh!" Meena gasped as the Dinosaur smashed the gate with its tail, leaving a massive dent. Meena cowered as she waited for the end. But instead of eating her, the Dinosaur ran in a different direction. "What?" Meena asked herself as the Dinosaur went to stomp around in their fountain. But after a short while, it gave out a roar in frustration. This wasn't enough water.
(Intro Theme)
At the Taylor Household, Zoe was watching a ballroom dance scene from a princess movie. "Aww, beautiful." Zoe sighed as a blush crept onto her face, unnoticed. "That should be me." She said, imagining herself in the place of the princess. "I would have made a great princess!"
"Well, she is good at ordering people around." Spiny whispered to Paris.
"Just let her have her dreams." Paris said as they watched Zoe talking to herself.
"Charmed, I'm sure." She mimicked the princess from the movie before laughing like her.
Her fantasy was interrupted when Chomp ran into the room with a soccer ball in his mouth. "Excuse me!"
"Give me the ball, Chomp!" Max said as he and Terry ran after him.
"Huh?" Zoe asked as she snapped back to reality.
"Stop! It's my ball!" Chomp whined as Max grabbed it from him.
"Zoe, you feel like playing soccer?" The brunette asked as he tossed the ball over to the pinkette.
"Ooh!" Zoe tensed at Max's actions. "No, I do not!" She yelled at them. "And you might try being more gentle with girls!"
"Uh, what?" Max asked, surprised by her sudden attitude change.
"Princesses are delicate, and they do not play violent games like soccer!" Zoe told him sternly.
"So you're a princess now?" Rex asked as he walked into the room. "That ball must've hit you on the head a lot harder than it looked like." He joked.
"Guess you've been watching old movies again, right?" Max asked Paris.
"She watched all the Disney princess films through the night." Paris explained.
"She really needs to let it go." Spiny said.
"Oh, just leave me alone!" Zoe exclaimed in frustration.
"You know Zoe, I can tell you that being a princess is not always about glitz and glamour." Rhysa said, as she came into the room. "It involves-"
But before she could continue or Zoe could lash out some more, the Dino Holders went off again. "It's another Dinosaur!" Max exclaimed.
DK
"Looks like it's in India, along the Ganges River." Reese confirmed once they reached the lab.
"The only source of fresh drinking water in India." Alicia said.
"All right, let's go!" Max said before heading towards the teleporter.
"Wait, Max." Rex said as he stopped him. "Ladies first."
"What?" Max asked before watching Zoe walk by proudly. Rhysa followed behind her, but just walked less proudly and more confused.
"I think we'd better go along with this princess thing for a while." Rex whispered to him, not wanting to unleash Zoe's anger upon himself or Max.
"Oh, all right." Max sighed in disappointment.
"Gentlemen, we princesses don't like to be kept waiting!" Zoe called out to them arrogantly.
"Excuse me?" Rhysa asked.
"Oh, coming, princess!" The two boys responded before running onto the teleporter.
"Wait, kids!" Spike called out as he carried several large bottles of water. "Take this along. You shouldn't drink tap water in India, especially not princesses."
"See ya, Dad!" Max chuckled before they vanished.
"You're royalty!" Spike exclaimed as he dropped the bottles.
"She's a royal something." Reese commented.
DK
Once they arrived in the village, the D-Team was swarmed by curious children. "What do you think they want, guys?" Max asked, starting to get nervous.
"We seem to be really popular." Zoe observed, her attitude changing back to normal.
"They've probably never seen our kind of style before." Rhysa guessed.
"We're here looking for a Dinosaur." Rex told them all, seeing no reason to hide it since they were this popular for just appearing out of nowhere. "Have you seen anything like that around here lately?"
The children looked at the quartet, confused by the question. "A Dinosaur?"
"Did you fall on your head?"
"No, but what about a Cow?" A girl suggested, offering a Cow she had.
"I do like beef." Terry said, licking his lips.
"Terry, no!" Ace told him. "Cows are sacred here. They don't eat them."
"Oh." Terry realised.
"Oh..." Max sighed as well since it seemed things were just going to be harder.
"I saw a Dinosaur recently." A girl in the back said.
"Huh? You did? Where?" Chomp asked as he looked from atop Max's head and saw a young girl covering herself with a veil.
The girl simply giggled before walking away. "Hey, wait for us!" Max said as they ran after her.
"Sorry, but we don't work well with Cattle!" Terry called out to the girl with the Cow.
DK
Eventually, they were able to catch up with her in an alleyway. "Where'd you see the Dinosaur?" Max asked her.
"At my house." The girl answered.
"What kind was it? Do you know?" Ace asked.
"Are you sure it was a Dinosaur?" Tank asked.
"Mm-hmm." The girl answered, removing her veil and revealing herself to be Meena. "It was too dark to tell much about it, but I know what I saw." She said before petting Ace and Tank. "What cute Dogs you are."
"Would you mind taking us back to where you saw it so we could maybe take a look around?" Terry asked.
"I'm sorry, but I cannot go back there." Meena answered, looking down at the ground.
"Huh? But why can't you go back to your own house?" Terry asked. "Was there a fight between you and your family?"
"No, that's not the reason. It is a long story, but if you come with me, I will tell you about the Dinosaur I saw." Meena told them.
"Uh..." The D-Team said in confusion. What was this girl's story?
DK
Inside the palace, things were not going well. After getting word that Meena vanished overnight, the Emperor had the whole place on high alert. "Where is Meena? Have you found my daughter?" The Emperor asked his adviser.
The adviser, a sneaky-looking man named Rasheed, replied. "No sire. We are searching everywhere, but so far there is no trace of her."
"Ah!" The Emperor exclaimed in frustration.
"We have apprehended 4 suspicious characters loitering the grounds." Rasheed added. "But they didn't seem to be involved with Meena, sir."
"What is suspicious about them?" The Emperor asked.
"They claim to be travelling actors here to put on a show for you. I personally think they're nothing but shifty lowlifes trying to sneak into the palace and rob us." Rasheed explained. "What should I tell them?"
"Lousy entertainment is the last thing I need right now." The Emperor said. "Throw them out."
"Yes, sir." Rasheed said with a bow before walking off. "Stupid Meena. Running off and making me have to clean up after her." He muttered under his breath.
"Meena..." The Emperor said worryingly.
The "shifty lowlifes" Rasheed found were actually the Hybro Gang, wearing Indian-style clothing to fit in. "Put me down." Slander said. "You're wrinkling my tunic!" He struggled against the grip of the large guard holding them in his grasp.
"Release me at once, you big oaf!" Louisa ordered. "Don't you know who you're messing with?!"
"You're lucky we don't have you vagrants arrested for smashing the fountain and the gate." Rasheed told them.
"Fountain?" Slander asked.
"Gate?" Tred asked.
"Shut up you two!" Louisa barked.
"Let me do the talking here." Cursula hissed at them before turning to the adviser. "Sir, could we at least show you our act, then you can decide to throw us out?"
Rasheed looked at them before sighing. "Well, all right, but do not waste my time. I'm very busy."
"Ah!" The Hybro Gang gasped as they didn't think their plan would work. "What act do we have?" Tred whispered to Cursula.
"The Dinosaur's somewhere around this house, so we just have to stall for a while." She whispered back before turning back to Rasheed. "Watch now and be amazed!" She declared before pulling out a table from nowhere.
"Shazam! I will now make a tiny Dinosaur magically emerge from this vase! Observe!" She announced before playing a flute, like a snake charmer. "And show me a Dinosaur!"
"Roar." Brontikens said sarcastically as he was lifted out of the vase.
"Look at that! Let's give me a big hand!" Cursula said to the audience of Rasheed. Rasheed only yawned in response. "Okay, tough crowd." Cursula muttered before enacting part two of the act. "And now I will make a large Dinosaur appear from this vase!" She said before she played the flute in the direction of another vase.
"Cursula, is this really a good idea?" Tred asked from inside the vase.
"Tred, just do it." The yellowette hissed.
"Or I'll do it for you!" Louisa threatened.
"Fine." Tred sighed before he called out Gigas.
The Tyrannosaurus erupted from the vase before destroying the whole table, and nearly crushing Cursula. Trying to come off as vicious and wild, he then smashed his head on the wall and made another hole with his tail. "Ugh! Ta-da!" Cursula said as she crawled out and got up from under his foot. But she could tell that her audience was not entertained.
Rasheed only looked around in horror. Not because of Gigas, but because of the damage he'd done. "You fools! Do you have any idea how much this stuff costs to rebuild?! The Emperor will kill me for this!"
"Uhhh, do you want to see the sawing in half trick?" Cursula asked sheepishly.
Her response was the four of them getting thrown out of the palace by the guards. "And stay out!" Rasheed yelled before slamming the door on them.
"Well, that could've gone better." Louisa groaned.
Tred lifted his head up from the dirt and noticed the damage in the palace's garden. "Hey, what happened over there, guys?"
"Huh?" Louisa, Cursula and Slander asked as they looked around and saw the place was a mess. There was a destroyed fountain and a massive hole in the wall. "Sure looks like Dinosaur damage to me." Slander commented.
"So the Dinosaur's the one that wrecked the fountain and the gate, and then it made a getaway!" Louisa said.
"Just as I thought. We're getting close now." Cursula said as she got onto her feet.
"Hey, Cursula, quick question. Were you really going to saw us in half?" Tred asked her as he, Louisa and Slander got up.
"Of course not!" Cursula responded by bashing his head in. "Although, I kind of wish I did now!"
DK
With the D-Team, they were currently riding around in a taxi per Meena's request. "Are we almost there?" Max asked, getting impatient.
"Wow, I have always wanted to try riding in a taxi!" Meena explained before she stuck her head out the side and threw her arms into the air. "Yippee!"
Eventually, they made their stop and a jewellery store. Meena tried on many earrings and other jewellery with Zoe and Rhysa before she led them to a cafe. "Try this." She said as she offered them all a drink. "This is my favourite drink called lassi. It is a drink made with Goat's milk." She explained to them.
They all took a sip from it and found it to be really good. "Thanks, Meena. It's really delicious." Zoe told her.
"Yeah, this is the best drink I've had since my Cousins' healthy milkshakes." Rhysa said, as she sipped her drink some more.
"I'm glad that you like it. I could drink them every day."
"Hey, could you tell us about the Dinosaur you saw?" Terry asked as he looked up from his plate of lassi.
"Yeah, 'cause it would be helpful if you could tell us if it was Bipedal or Quadrupedal." Tracker added.
"Yes, I will tell you everything on our way to the Ganges." Meena told him.
"We're going to the Ganges?" Terry asked.
"That's right. If you swim towards the sunset, all of your dreams will come true." Meena explained to them all.
"Your dreams come true? Really?" Zoe asked, amazed by this.
"I wonder if I could get that...thing I always wanted." Spiny wondered.
"I'm positive it's just a story." Ace whispered to him, trying to not upset Meena.
Suddenly, there was the sound of tires screeching. Meena gasped when she saw a purple limousine stop in front of them. Worst of all, she saw her mother come out of it. Meena quickly hid behind Zoe before her mother could see her. "I have to go! I am sorry" She whispered to them before running away, making sure to stay low.
"Huh? Why? What's the matter?" Zoe asked as she ran after her.
"Excuse me, young men and miss." Meena's mother asked as she approached them. "But, by chance, have you seen this girl around the neighbourhood?" She asked as she pulled out a picture of Meena.
"Uh, well..." Max stuttered as he tried to find the right response.
"Um, perhaps…" Rhysa tried to come up with a good excuse.
"Who is she, ma'am?" Rex asked her.
"Meena is the youngest daughter of the royal family and she's missing." Meena's mother explained. "Sometime last night, she disappeared from that house you see up on the hill. Her father, sister, and I are very worried about her. So, please, let us know if you should happen to see her." She bowed before going back into the limo.
"You know, I think that Meena and our Meena have something in common." Spiny said.
"Yeah, that's what we just established." Tank said before whacking him on the head.
"I know, I was trying to sound all cool or something."
"This is the second time I've met royalty in person now." Rhysa said, still remembering the kisses that his princess friends Princesses Serena and Serenity gave her back in Florida.
"Well if Meena's really a princess, then maybe we should talk to her on why she ran away." Dread said.
DK
They eventually found Meena and Zoe in an alleyway and told them everything Meena's Mother told them. Zoe, of course, was thrilled at what she just found out about her new friend. "Wow, you're a real-live princess and you didn't tell us?!" She exclaimed.
"Hey, Zoe, keep it down!" Max hissed as he motioned for her to be quiet.
"Yeah, we don't want to attract the wrong kind of attention!" Rhysa shushed.
"But why would a princess ever want to run away?" Zoe whispered to Meena.
Meena wasn't listening and was instead playing with Chomp, who was biting on her bracelet. "So you want to eat my bracelet, do you?"
"Meena, listen." Terry sternly told her. "Your family is looking for you, and they seem pretty worried."
"Yes, but I cannot return home until I finally reach the Ganges and swim into the sunset." Meena replied.
"Why is this swimming into the sunset thing so important to you?" Terry asked as he sat down next to her. "If you're a princess, couldn't you just go at any time?"
"My parents refuse for me to do so. They say that I shouldn't be wasting my time on silly stories and focusing on important things."
"Well, you are going to take the throne when you're older." Terry reminded her.
Meena shook her head. "No, Zahrah's the eldest sibling. When my father steps down, she'll be the one who gets his crown. I will have nothing."
"So you want to swim into the sunset so your princess title won't feel worthless." Terry realised.
Meena nodded in confirmation. "Yes, it is something I must do. I feel this is the only way to find out what I should do with my life."
"But Meena, you'll find the right path when the time comes." Rhysa said.
It was then Zoe had an idea. "Hey, how about if I took your place at home?" She suggested. "Just until sundown, I'll pretend that I'm you, and then when you get back, we can switch places again!"
Everyone looked at her like she was crazy. "Have you lost your mind or something?" Max asked her angrily. "They're gonna know right away that you aren't really her!"
"Yeah and Zoe, being a princess isn't as easy as you think it is." Rhysa said. "Take it from someone who knows two princesses and who experienced what they had to do-"
"No, they won't. And Rhysa being a princess is as easy as riding a bike." Zoe assured Max and interrupted Rhysa from her explaining, as she bent down to Meena's level. "Come on, I have an idea."
"Okay." Meena said nervously, more for Zoe's sake than her own.
A few minutes later, the two of them emerged from a corner with the other one's clothes. The only change made to either outfit was that Meena had her naval covered per tradition. "See? You can't even tell who's who anymore." Zoe said.
"Please, I can easily tell you apart. Right, Zoe?" Spiny said to Meena.
"See? Told you it would work." Zoe bragged.
"I don't think Spiny really counts." Max sighed, knowing he couldn't convince her otherwise.
"Zoe when you experience what the true world of a princess is, I'm certain you'll be changing your tune." Rhysa said, already having a good picture of what Zoe's going to go through.
"We'll see about that Rhysa." Zoe said with confidence. "I assure you that being a princess is as easy as can be."
"Yeah I bet." Rhysa mumbled under her breath.
"I'm gonna check out her house for the Dinosaur while I'm there, so this is perfect isn't it?" Zoe whispered to Rex, expecting him to be on her side.
Rex wasn't quite so positive about this plan. "Well, I guess."
"Okay, we're all set! So, Meena, you go ahead and follow your dreams, and we'll take care of the rest."
"Okay!"
"There she is!" Meena's mother said as she drove right past them. "Driver, stop the car!"
"All right, wish me luck, and come home as soon as you can." Zoe whispered to Meena before she put on her veil and ran towards the limo.
"Bye...Meena." Rex waved awkwardly.
"Meena, my child, you had us worried sick!" Meena's mother said as Zoe entered the car. "Honestly, such behaviour." She scolded her before she closed the door and the car drove off.
"She's very brave." Meena said as she watched the car head towards the palace.
"You can say that again." Rhysa said.
"That's not what I was going to say." Max said before they all felt the ground shake. They all looked around frantically for the source. "It's this way!" Max said as he led them towards the possible Dinosaur.
They were proven correct when they heard a man exclaim. "Oh! Keep running!" As the Deltadromeus started tearing up the marketplace. When Max, Rex and Rhysa reached him, he gave a roar of frustration.
Max was about to use one of his Dinos, but noticed that they, along with Meena, were missing. "Rex, Rhysa, do you know which way our Dinos went?"
"I don't see them or Meena anywhere!" Rhysa gasped, looking around. "Where's our Dinos gone? Rex, you see them anywhere?"
"No! They must have followed Meena!" Rex realised before noticing it became dark. "Huh?" Looking up, the blonde and the two boys saw the Deltadromeus towering over them. "Aah!" The three of them screamed as they ran for their lives.
DK
"Rhysa, Max and Rex, where are you?" Meena asked as she searched through the crowd of panicking villagers for her friends.
"Meena!" Looking down, Meena saw Terry and the other Dinosaurs.
"Terry, I am so happy you all are here!" Meena said as she gave the Tyrannosaurus a hug to ease her nerves. As she did, she noticed that the lighting in the area had changed. Looking to the horizon, she got her answer. "The sun has almost set. I had better hurry and get to the river." She said before running off, still carrying Terry.
"Hey! Wait up!" Chomp said as they ran after her.
DK
Back in the marketplace, the Deltadromeus has just destroyed a taxi before noticing a small fountain. Seeing this as a way to ease his nerves, he leapt into the air and dived into the fountain in a belly flop. Of course, the water wasn't very deep. Roaring in both anger and pain, the Deltadromeus smashed the fountain with his tail.
With him occupied, Rhysa, Max and Rex were able to approach him without angering him. "That looks like a Deltadromeus!" Max identified.
"I think you're right Max!" Rhysa said. "Deltadromeus was discovered in North Africa, and you can tell by the small horns that are close to the top of his eyes!"
"Yeah, and he seems pretty angry tearing up the water fountain like that." Rex noted before remembering something he read. "But come to think of it, the natural habitat for Deltadromeus was thought to be rivers and swamps. I wonder if he could be looking for the nearest river to claim as his territory." Rex hypothesised.
"You might be right about that Rex!" Rhysa gasped. "Most Predators avoided the water, but Deltadromeus were thought to have been excellent swimmers! They could easily chase their prey better in the water than on land!"
"Hey, wasn't Meena just talking about a river?" Max remembered her saying something about swimming to the sunset in a river. "The Ganges!" The trio realised.
The Deltadromeus perked up after hearing this. This Ganges place seemed promising. Getting out of the fountain, he immediately went for the direction he believed the river was. "That's bad. I'll betcha anything he's heading for it now." Max said as they watched him run off.
"Yeah, but so is Meena." Rex reminded him.
"And the Hybro Gang might be there too!" Rhysa realised. "If we don't move it now, then they'll take Deltadromeus, our Dinos and they might even hurt Meena!"
"Let's go!" Max said before they went after him.
DK
"Your father and sister will be quite relieved to hear that you are home safe, as we all are." Meena's Mother said to Zoe once they made it back to the palace. Zoe was poured a cup of tea while the servants fixed up "her" room. "I cannot imagine what would possess you to do such a thing, Meena."
"Whoa." Zoe thought as she looked around the room. "What an incredible room! The whole house is just like the princess's palace I saw in my dream." She slowly pulled down her veil and took a sip of the tea. "Mmm! Oh, this is wonderful! It's just how I imagined it would be!" One of the servants walked over to her and started to remove her veil. Zoe quickly grabbed the veil and pulled it down to her head. "No, don't take it off! I want it on!"
"Why would you wear your veil indoors, my dear?" Her Mother asked, confused by her actions. That is until she noticed something important about "Meena".
"I may have caught a cold while I was out, and it's a little chilly in here" Zoe quickly replied.
Meena's mother sighed. "Well, in any case, here's your schedule for today." She said as she pulled out her notebook. "First, we have English lessons, followed by French lessons, and then Indian dance class, then cooking class, and then..."
Zoe's eyes widened in horror. "Nobody told me princessing involved actual work!" Welcome to hell, Zoe.
DK
The sky was a bright orange when Meena and the Dinosaurs arrived at the Ganges. "I cannot believe I'm finally here." Meena thought aloud. "The sacred river, the Ganges!"
All around the river, many were enjoying it. A group of young boys were playing in the river while many adults were taking a bath. Meena grabbed a swimming outfit and went into a changing room to put it on. "All right, my friends, wait for me right here." Meena said once she emerged before running to the diving spot the boys used and dived in.
"Go, Meena! Follow your dreams!" Spiny cheered.
"Didn't we establish she's not going to find anything?" Tank asked.
"She could still find something out there." Chomp said as he and Paris cuddled next to each other, enjoying the sunset.
"She might even find her path in life." Dread said.
Meena laughed as she did Butterfly strokes towards the sunset. "I'm free! I'm finally free!" She thought happily. "Maybe it's true that the Ganges leads all the way up to heaven!" The princess thought as she looked at some Birds flying over her. "I'm finally swimming towards my dream! I just know my prince and a life of happiness and freedom are waiting for me out there!"
Her train of thoughts were broken when she heard the sound of a Dinosaur roar. Turning around, she saw the Deltadromeus at the steps leading into the river before he dived in. Meena gasped as the Dinosaur did Butterfly strokes towards her. Please don't ask how he was able to do so.
"The Dinosaur!" Stiggy and Stigga gasped.
"It's a Deltadromeus!" Brontina cried.
"Meena! Watch out!" Giganto yelled.
"Stay away!" Meena said as she resumed her swimming, going a lot faster to avoid the Dinosaur. It was no use as the Deltadromeus was easily able to catch up to her. But instead of attacking her, he swam right past her towards the sunset. "He was not after me at all." Meena realised. "Maybe he's swimming toward the sunset, too." The princess smiled as the Deltadromeus gave a happy roar to finally find a place that had enough water to swim in as they swam towards their dreams together.
"Meena!" Turning around, Meena saw Terry latched onto the Deltadromeus' Tail.
"You came to save me! Thank you, Terry!" Meena said as he swam towards her, stopping so he could catch up.
"Mission accomplished!" Cursula said as the Hybro Gang appeared from nowhere on a small, traditional Indian boat, each with a plate of curry. "The Deltadromeus is here, and those delinquents aren't. So, we can now enjoy our curry, then capture our Dinosaur for dessert."
"Yeah, all that running from that palace made me hungry." Louisa said, as she was literally drooling in the boat.
Slander grabbed a small piece of the curry and placed it in his mouth. Once he did, fire literally started coming out of his mouth. "I asked for spicy, not to burn off my taste buds! Somebody put out the fire in my mouth!" He screamed.
Tred looked up from his meal and saw Slander's pain. "It's really much more civilised to use a spoon, you know." He said, guesting to the spoon which helped him not have such problems with his curry.
"But not in India. You eat with your hands because spoons are sacred or something." Cursula explained to him.
"Oh, I didn't know." Tred said as he was about to grab some with his left hand.
"No, not that hand, you big clod!" Cursula hit him on the head. "Use your right hand. The left hand is considered to be unclean here." She scolded him before grabbing some curry of her own. "Good grief, talk about uncivilised." She took a bit out of her own and faced the same problem as Slander, plus swelled up lips. "Slander, summon somebody before my head blows off!"
"HYBRO SLASH! SPECTRAL ARMOUR ACTIVATE!"
Slander grabbed the first card he had and called out Gigas. When the Tyrannosaurus appeared, he ended up destroying the boat the Hybro Gang was on. "Yaa!" Meena shuddered at the appearance of a less friendly Dinosaur.
The Deltadromeus stopped his swimming when he heard Gigas' roar. Turning around he saw the white Tyrannosaurus in the river heading for Meena and Terry. Seeing Gigas as a threat in his new territory, he started swimming back to fight him. As he swam the Deltadromeus started glowing too, but white as in a dimension of wind a circle of wind appeared around Deltadromeus as a bright white circle appeared on his forehead, wind then came bursting out of his sides as one white appeared on either side of him, then the one on his forehead shone brightly as shoulder blade white coloured armour on his shoulders on each side, as more armour appeared on his sides working its way down from his front to his tail, finally armour appeared on his head like a helmet, the Deltadromeus roared at the sky as he swung his head around and posed as wind blustered all around the dimension.
In the marketplace, Rhysa, Max and Rex noticed the change in colour. They knew the Hybro Gang was attacking the Deltadromeus. "Let's hurry!" Rex said before they made a break for the Ganges.
"Just hang on, Deltadromeus, we're coming to rescue you!" Rhysa cried as she ran.
Back in the river, Gigas advanced towards Meena and Terry. Seeing that the kids weren't there, this was the perfect chance to rid the Tyrannosaurus once and for all. Terry growled as Meena hugged him closer to her.
But before Gigas could attack them, the Deltadromeus tackled him away. "Another one?" Meena asked as she thought the Deltadromeus wanted her.
Gigas landed on the shore and got back up, only for the Deltadromeus to run up to his side and knock him away with a swing from his tail. "Come on, Gigas! Don't let him smack you around like that!" Cursula yelled as she and the others continued on eating their curry while they paddled on a draft of wood to shore.
"I'm really getting tired!" Tred whined.
"Maybe you should stop feeding your face!" Cursula yelled at him.
"I can't even feel my face anymore!" Slander cried.
"Less whining and more kicking!" Louisa ordered.
Gigas got back up again and charged towards the Deltadromeus. Gigas tried to knock him down, but the Deltadromeus grabbed his head and stopped him, leading to a struggle between the two Carnivores.
Meena and Terry swam to shore and met back up with the other Dinosaurs before they all saw the fight going on. "That poor Dinosaur is being hurt when all it was doing was swimming after its dreams." Meena said, almost crying at what she was seeing happen before her.
"That's something those crooks are known for." Chomp said as they watched Gigas knock down his opponent and began to repeatedly stomp on the Deltadromeus with his foot, unable to do anything without getting hurt themselves.
"This is bad!" Tracker cried. "Gigas' got the Deltadromeus trapped under his foot!"
"You've got no chance at all!" Gigas told the Deltadromeus as he attacked him.
"That's where you're wrong!"
The Hybro Gang looked and saw Rhysa, Max and Rex arrive. "Perfect, it's the brats." Cursula complained.
"Why do they always show up at the wrong time?" Louisa asked.
"Go, Gigas! Knock that thing back into its card so we can get out of here!" Slander cheered.
"Gladly!" Gigas roared.
"The Deltadromeus can't take another hit!" Rhysa cried. "He needs help!"
"Terry, let's help the Deltadromeus!" Max said as he got out his Dino Holder.
"DINO SLASH! FLAME UP, TYRANNOSAURUS! ELEMENT BOOSTER! DINO TECTOR ON!"
"Wait, Terry is a Dinosaur?!" Meena gasped as it all started to click in for her.
"Wasn't it kind of obvious?" Chomp asked her.
Gigas grabbed the Deltadromeus by his neck and lifted him into the air before Terry tackled him from behind and made him drop the blue Theropod. "Leave him alone!" Terry roared as he tossed Gigas into the river.
"All right!" Max cheered.
The Deltadromeus slowly got up and weakly walked over to Meena. Meena opened her arms as she expected the Deltadromeus to want a hug. But instead, the blue Theropod collapsed and returned to his card. The card floated to the ground before it and the Element Booster were picked up by Meena. "What's this?"
"Don't even think about it!" Cursula yelled at the princess. "That card belongs to us, missy, so hand it over right now or else!"
"This is yours, old lady?" Meena asked her.
"Oh, no, you did not just call me an old lady!" Cursula yelled before tensing.
"Gigas, get that card from her no matter what it takes, now!" Slander commanded him.
Gigas' eyes flashed before he gave a roar and advanced towards Meena. The princess didn't know what to do as Gigas approached her. "Don't you dare touch her!" Terry roared before biting the other Tyrannosaur on the neck and tossing him to the ground.
"Oh, Terry!"
"Stand back, Meena!" Max warned her as he got out his Move Card. "Blazing Spin Attack!"
Terry's mouth gathered with fire before he charged at Gigas. With the other Tyrannosaurus getting stunned by the fire when he got close, Terry was able to grab him by the neck and start spinning Gigas around, like what Tank does with Dino Swing, before letting him go and sending him flying towards the Hybro Gang. "Aah!" The quartet screamed before they were smashed by the now defeated Gigas.
"Are you alright, Meena?" Rex asked as he and Rhysa ran over to her.
Meena wasn't listening and was instead watching Terry roaring into the sunset. "I did not find my prince beyond the sunset, but Terry did come and save my life."
"That's my bro. Always a hero." Chomp said as they all watched Terry roar proudly.
DK
At the palace, Zoe was having a horrible time. At the moment, she was trying to hold a pose for her dance class with Zahrah. "Straighten your back and point your toes!" Meena's mother told her.
"I'm trying!" Zoe struggled.
"Do it!" Meena's mother gave her a wack with her cane for some disciplining encouragement.
"Ow!" Zoe cried as her Dino Holder fell out of its hiding place. "Uh-oh." Meena's mother went down to inspect, but Zoe quickly grabbed it, chuckling nervously. "Time for my walk!" She exclaimed as she ran out of the palace.
"I'm surprised she lasted that long." Zahrah said once she left.
"Agreed. I was sure she'd break the minute she realised being a princess means responsibility." Meena's mother said.
DK
At the Ganges, the D-Team has just finished telling Meena everything about them. "So you travel around to protect Dinosaurs?" Meena asked, making sure she understood.
"Yeah, pretty much." Terry confirmed. "It's tiring at times, but the job has its benefits."
"We get to see lots of places, fight lots of Dinosaurs and even make friends sometimes too." Giganto said proudly.
"But today it was the Dinosaurs who protected me." Meena said. "By Terry here, and also this blue one that turned into the card." She said as she walked over to the Deltadromeus, who was watching the sunset.
"My kind are called Deltadromeus." The blue Theropod told her. "But I think I'll go by Delta Swimmer or just simply Delta."
Meena smiled and pet Delta's foot. "I'm sorry you weren't able to follow your dream." She said in a comforting tone.
"Swimming in the Ganges doesn't exactly make your dreams come true." Delta told her. "It was believed that by swimming to the sunset, misguided Dinosaurs would figure out their path in life."
"Path in life?" Meena repeated.
"I believe what my path is for now is to join up with their Herd and fight those horrible people to protect the rest of our kind." Delta told her as he walked over to them, gently nudging her with his snout. "But don't let me stop you. There's still time to find your path."
"I think I found it." Meena said with a smile.
"I wonder how Zoe's doing?" Tank asked. "It's been a while."
"Maybe she's too busy having fun being a princess." Paris said.
"I don't know if 'fun' is the word I'd use." Dread said.
"Max, Rex, Rhysa, save me!" Zoe screamed as she finally managed to find them.
"What's wrong?" Paris asked her.
"It was horrible in that house! I never want to be a princess!" Zoe told them.
"I tried to tell you Zoe, but you wouldn't listen." Rhysa said smugly.
After changing back to their regular clothes in the alleyway, Zoe was able to catch her breath. "At least now I understand what Rhysa was trying to tell me and why you ran away." She told Meena. "Being a princess isn't just glitz and glamour, is it, Meena?"
"No, but I am going to go home anyway." Meena replied.
"What?!" The D-Team exclaimed.
"I owe it all to you for showing me what my destiny is." Meena told them. "I've finally found a real dream that I can work toward."
"What kind of dream are you thinking about?" Zoe asked her.
"I want to become a research scientist and study Dinosaurs." Meena declared. "After all, those Dinosaurs did risk their lives just to rescue me. I want to know more about them." She said as she pet Delta on the snout. "While there is so much that is still unknown, I feel that I have a good start towards understanding."
"Well, then in that case..." Max said before reaching into his pack and pulling something out. "You need this." He said as he showed her a badge in the shape of a D.
"It's a badge that says you're part of the D-Team." Terry explained.
"Really? This is for me?" Meena asked in surprise as she accepted the gift.
"Yep. As of today, you're officially one of us." Max told her with a big smile on his face.
"One of us! One of us!" Spiny and Chomp chanted.
"Oh!" Meena gasped as she looked at the badge. "I'll treasure this, Max!"
At that moment, the purple limo pulled up in front of them. Delta was recalled before Meena's Mother came out. "Visit me." He said before he appeared as a card in Rex's fingers.
"Meena, you must stop running off like this!" Her mother told her. "Your father is worried sick! Wait. Who is this?" She asked as she noticed Zoe. "Haven't we met? You look familiar."
Zoe tensed up in fear and quickly turned away. "No, you must have me mistaken for someone else!"
"I suppose I should go." Meena told her friends. "Take care, my new friends." With a bow, she entered the car.
"You too, Meena." Rex told her.
"Hope to see you again one day." Rhysa smiled.
"No more running away from home!" Max joked.
Once she sat down, she was immediately pinched on the shoulder by Zahrah. "You owe me for not telling them where you were going." She hissed.
"I do." Meena agreed, confusing her sister with her sudden behaviour change before rolling down the window. "Thank you all, and especially you, Terry."
"It was nothing." Terry blushed as the limo drove off.
"Farewell, D-Team! Until we meet again!" Meena waved them goodbye.
"Bye!" The team waved back.
DK:
Once they got back to the D-Lab, Delta was being introduced to everyone. Rhysa then pulled out her camera and started recording everyone welcoming Delta into the Herd.
"Now with Delta the Deltadromeus joining our Herd, we've rescued a total of 81 different Dinosaurs! And we're gonna keep on rescuing even more!"
Next time on Dinosaur King:
Dr.N: My Deinonychus! I knew I'd find you someday!
Tred: You know them?
Dr.N: Of course! That's Dino, this one's Danno, and that's Sue!
Hybro Gang: Sue?!
A/N: And this chapter's all done, and now I can take time to finally focus on tweaking another chapter that I personally didn't like from Drew's story.
See you all in Ninja Nightmare!