After what felt like a while, Cole's eyes fluttered open and the blurs slowly formed as he blinked a few times.

"Well, I'm here.", he stated to himself.

Cole felt like he could stand and he did which surprised him. He looked at his hands and saw they were three fingered and had what looked like blunt talons before a bit of anxiety came over him.

"What form am I in now?", he wondered.

Luckily now his vision was restored and he saw he was in what looked like an open area that looked mostly barren with some large grass patches here and there, but the plants looked prehistoric which got Cole's attention.

"Same animation as Balto's world.", he thought, "But this isn't Nome, so where am I?"

He noticed a pool of water nearby and was clear enough with the sun nearing sunset for him to see his reflection. What stared back at him he could describe as a Gallimimus dinosaur only he was light green with darker green from the back of his head to the end of his tail, long legged, had a long neck, and was upright (which he was thankful for) with what looked like blunted talons on his feet as well as his fingers though his eyes remained the same among the bill that held yellow, red-orange, and blue.
"Wait a minute, I know what this is, but from where?", he asked himself.

As Cole looked down his new neck, he noticed a white patch where he guessed his necklace would be and touched it to only feel scales.

"This is really weird.", he couldn't help but say.

"Oh good, you came."

Cole snapped as the voice grabbed his attention.

"I was thinking you wouldn't show up."

Cole suddenly felt like someone was watching him and looked around.

"Who's there?", he asked, "Who just said that?"

"I did.", the voice answered.

"And who are you?", Cole asked still looking around.

"I would ask the same question.", the voice said calmly, "Just look up near the trees on your right."

Cole did so and noticed a sauropod that reminded him of a brachiosaurus only it was slightly smaller and it was light gray with a sandy underside. Its head was square like, but had a boney crest that went from the top of its head to the end of its nose where the nostrils were while sporting green eyes and a warm smile.

"See me now?", he asked.

Cole recovered from his moment of awe as well as his nerve feeling that whoever this was, he was a friend.

"I guess.", he answered, "So, where am I?"

The sauropod walked up to Cole which didn't take long as he was pretty big and brought his head close to Cole.

"You're on your next journey of course.", he said still smiling warmly, "For it was you who wished it."

Cole felt a bit of confusion when he recalled the times the necklace had shimmered back in the airport and wondered maybe it was his confused emotions or was it something more? The sauropod seemed to know what he was thinking and gestured for Cole to follow him.

"Take a walk with me and you'll get the idea."

/

As Cole walked alongside his new acquaintance, he got the hang of his dinosaur body.

"So why did the magic bring me here?", Cole couldn't help but ask, "What journey am I on that makes it so I came here?"

"Your answers will come in due time.", the sauropod answered calmly, "After you learn what you need to learn."

He paused at what looked like footprints and Cole could tell that they weren't any kind of plant eating dinosaurs, but after a bit they moved on.

"In this world, beneath a sun similar to yours, there live two kinds of life. One has flat teeth and eat the leaves, and the other has sharp teeth for eating meat and they prey upon the leaf eaters.", the sauropod explained, "In this moment of time, the leaves are dying out and some herds head off toward the west searching for the Great Valley a land still fresh and green despite the changes that occur outside it's mountain walls."

Cole felt like he knew this kind of talk, but let the sauropod continue though he paused at a tree where he picked a leaf shaped like a star large enough for Cole to hold in his hands that held dew and formed a shallow pool in the center as he laid it in front of Cole.

"What is this?", Cole asked.

"This is where your journey begins.", the sauropod answered, "But before I depart, a word of caution. Some herds do not feel like blending into others due to them having high opinions of themselves. Do not give into violence when trouble seems imminent. Follow your heart, be brave, and do what is right."

Cole looked at the leaf and then back to the sauropod that had started to walk off.

"Wait, who are you?", Cole asked.

"My name is Imastun.", the sauropod answered calmly as he continued walking off, "A clue awaits for you to find and to solve."

Cole watched Imastun walk off for a while before returning his attention to the leaf. At first it looked like nothing was happening, but as Cole was about to give up, something in the reflection caught his eye and words began forming in the shallow pool.

"A herd will soon be in need of a guide. Learn to unite or you will be in for a ride.", he read before the words faded and he picked up the leaf causing the water to fall out onto the barren ground temporarily soaking it, "Imastun, what does that-"

He paused as he had looked up to see that Imastun was no longer around.

"Well, that was pretty odd.", Cole thought to himself, "And if I'm right, this leaf is called a tree star and that would mean that I'm in the Land Before Time."

A memory sparked in his mind as he recalled his much younger days and his mother introduced him to the story. It was vague, but Cole had the rundown on what it was.

"Guess I have to find Littlefoot before the big event happens.", he decided as he rolled the tree star and tucked it under his arm.

As Cole made his way around, he couldn't get Imastun out of his mind. Something about him felt familiar, and then he remembered a similar kind of person from his earlier adventure.

"Nava, was that you?", Cole couldn't help but ask, but then he dismissed it, "No, how could it? He can't leave his world like I can."

Cole was brought out of his thoughts as he felt the white spot on his neck start to get warm.

"Now what?", he asked.

As if to answer him, the spot grew cool again, but Cole heard a faint sound as if someone was yelling, but he couldn't decide where it was coming from.

"Well, may as well make an educated guess.", he shrugged and took off towards his right.

/

Cole hadn't gone very far when he came to a large patch of tall grass which he parted to reveal in the distance, an adult triceratops and apatosaurus each with a young member of themselves in their mouths while giving each other a look before parting.

"I'm guessing something went down that shouldn't.", Cole guessed, "Well, Imastun did say some herds don't like getting along with others."

Even though Cole wasn't near him, Cole could tell that the triceratops probably wouldn't be eager to tell him what had gone down, but maybe the apatosaurs would. He made sure to keep himself out of sight though close enough to listen as the two started talking.

"Mother, what are long necks?", the young apatosaur asked.

"That's what we are dear.", the adult who Cole figured was the young one's parent.

Cole recalled Imastun and maybe he was similar, but different as he let the two continue talking.

"Why couldn't I play with that three horn? We were having fun."

"Well, we keep to our own kind.", his mother told him, "The three horns, the flyers, the spike tails. We hardly do anything together."

"Why?"

The adult chuckled as she looked to her son.

"Well, because we're different."

Cole felt for her. People often judge what they don't understand and maybe in this world of talking dinosaurs, they felt the same way before he heard the young apatosaur ask why again which brought him out of his thoughts.

"Oh, don't worry so much.", he heard the mother say, "We still have a long way to go to reach the rock that looks like a longneck, and past the mountains that burn."

Cole suddenly felt a bit of drowsiness as he observed the brachiosaur walk off before being joined up by two more adults that looked more elderly.

"Guess I should look for a place to sleep.", he said with a shrug.

Luckily, he still had his human brain with him and he remembered what he had learned in his outdoor survival class. Using some tall grass, he pressed and arranged for them to make a mattress while using another batch on a rock to make a pillow. Sure it looked pretty basic, but it was the best he could do.

"Well, hopefully tomorrow, I'll be more prepared for what this world will send my way."

As Cole laid down to rest, he caught sight of the setting sun and couldn't help but feel like he was camping out in the wilderness like he and Blake used to do back in his world. Oh, those were the days. The campfire singing, the river swimming, the hiking, and much more. Then he remembered when his parents dropped him off at the airport on his way to college.

"Cole, I know this is hard to understand, but sometimes friends can't always be together.", his mother tried explaining.

His father put a hand on Cole's shoulder as they got in line for the ticket counter.

"Good friends are hard to leave, but they are impossible to forget. He'll always be with you in your heart."

Cole remembered himself sighing rather sadly.

"I don't want him in my heart.", he insisted, "I want him in Anchorage with me."

Cole's parents could tell he was hurting, but they got his ticket anyway and before he went through security, they wished him luck and that things would get better. After a while, Cole had tried to put it out of his mind, but it still lingered enough for him to recall when Blake and him had met and the school years they had together. How could he forget anyone like Blake? Cole tried to get a grip on himself cause he knew feeling pity for himself wouldn't solve anything. Soon, he was out like a light and sleeping soundly while being surrounded by a large rock with walls on the sides in case anything "unwanted" came along.

/

Cole slipped into dreaming, he started wondering what his college would be like. The pamphlet he had received in the mail described a school that looked pretty superb and classy. He imagined coming towards a college that looked similar to others, but as he entered the hall, the whole area seemed dark and foreboding. Cole tried to put it out of his mind, but something was up and he wanted to find out what.

"Why can't I give this place a chance?", he asked himself.

Just as Cole was about to get into his dreams, a faint thump reached his ears making him wake up on the spot.

"What was that?", he asked getting a bit scared.

Another faint thump and Cole suddenly felt fear bubbling up as he got to his feet and looked around. By now, night had fallen and the full moon was looming albeit near setting, but still Cole felt fear like a pair of gripping claws on his nerves and he wasn't going to stay and find out what it was. He hadn't gone pretty far as he bolted away before coming towards a large pond of what he hoped was just water, but the way it bubbled and looked murky, he doubted it when a voice reached his ears.

"That's my hopper!"

It was faint, but then he heard another voice albeit faintly.

"I saw him first."

"Well, he's in my pond"

Cole then saw the same two little dinosaurs from before as they slid into the pond where what looked like a large frog leaped into where the bubbles started reflecting other frogs. Cole felt pretty uncomfortable as he trudged over as the two were seeing to have fun popping bubbles. Needless to say, the little three horn didn't look happy to see him.

"Who are you?", she asked rather harshly.

Cole chose to ignore her as he tried to make a conversation.

"Excuse me, but I couldn't help but notice and thought I'd introduce myself."

The little long neck looked a bit more at ease though the three-horn seemed unphased.

"Hello, my name is Cole.", Cole said extending a hand.

The little long neck looked a bit curious.

"I'm Littlefoot."

The three-horn didn't look like she was going to give her name, but Cole wasn't going to be brushed off so easily.

"So, you're who?", he asked as he looked her way, "Mildred? Wanda?"

"It's Cera.", the little three horn snapped clearly annoyed that the newcomer wasn't going away, "And three horns don't interact with-"

A thump grabbed Cole's attention and he froze up as he recalled a similar one before.

"Shh!", Cole said suddenly cutting Cera off.

"Don't "shh" me Mr. Rainbow-", Cera started

By now the thumps were getting louder and the whole rotting tree the group was under shook as ripples appeared on the pond as if something big was coming and it certainly didn't sound friendly by the way Cole heard it. Luckily it shut Cera up as she and Littlefoot's eyes darted around to see what was making the sounds. Cole did too and when he looked a bit to his right, he immediately wished he hadn't. Stomping towards them was a full grown adult sized tyrannosaurs rex that looked like it had eyes on eating them. Cera and Littlefoot saw it too and were equally scared.

"Sharptooth!", Cera screamed.

Cole suddenly felt like bolting and seeing the other two do so, he chased after them.

"Wait for me!", he called.

Sharptooth kept coming after them and Cole knew that if they didn't find shelter, they'd be the predator's next meal. Luckily he saw a thick bramble of thorns nearby and jumped into it with Littlefoot and Cera right behind him.

"Get down and stay down.", Cole instructed.

/

Even though they were all a good distance in the bush, Sharptooth's large clawed feet moved around it as if he was waiting for his prey to come out.

"What in Heaven's name is that?", Cole asked.

Cera looked his way a bit scared.

"That's Sharptooth.", she said, "Daddy says that when he chooses his prey he never stops hunting it."

Cole had a sickening feeling that Cera might be right, but as broken branches fell on them from above, when they looked above, they saw Sharptooth making his way down sniffing along the way. Luckily they were under a large vine that made it impossible for him to get to them, but he did send a cloud of breath at them which almost made Cole throw up. Fortunately for them, Sharptooth had decided to back off and retreated back the way he had come leaving them alone again. Cole made his way to the other end of the bush as quietly as he could while gesturing Littlefoot and Cera to follow which they did.

"Okay, if we stay quiet and go this way, he might not see us.", Cole whispered.

Either Cera was panicking or she thought on the spot cause she bolted the other way catching Cole and Littlefoot off guard.

"Cera, not that way!", Cole called after her as he and Littlefoot gave chase.

But as they did, they were suddenly out in the open and Sharptooth must have seen them cause he suddenly appeared right behind them as he dove in while getting tangled in vines holding him back. Cole had gotten through, but Littlefoot was stuck also. Cole had to free the little dinosaur cause the vines holding Sharptooth wouldn't hold much longer! Grabbing a hold of Littlefoot's front leg, Cole pulled as hard as he could. Needless to say, it didn't seem to be working and the sight of Sharptooth almost through only freaked him out enough to pull even harder, break the vines that held Littlefoot and send them flying back at Sharptooth and getting a large thorn on a vine to hit the predator's eye. Sharptooth suddenly broke out of the brush clearly in pain as he horridly brushed the thorny vines aside, though his eye remained blind. Littlefoot, Cole, and Cera bolted out further with Cera screaming which drew Sharptooth's attention and before long, he was upon them again breathing another cloud over them as the landing he did made them fall to the ground. As Cole was about to pray for peace, a tail swung and knocked Sharptooth away into a rock wall. The trio saw it was Littlefoot's mother which made them pause.

"Mother?", Littlefoot asked.

"Run!", she told her son, "Run!"

Sharptooth had by now gotten up again and was now enraged that the sauropod dared to interfere. As the two adults fought, Cole helped guide Littlefoot and Cera to a safe spot as Littlefoot's mother suddenly had an opening and used her tail to smack Sharptooth aside again which made him hit another wall making him stunned. But just as Littlefoot's mother had dropped her guard, Cole saw Sharptooth suddenly jump up onto her back while sinking his fangs into her back as the trio watched in horror. Fortunately, before he did too much, Littlefoot's mother had shaken him off and after a bit, she had another opening and used her tail to send him falling into a ditch while she rejoined the group.

"Madam, your back.", Cole said noticing the injuries.

"I…I'll be fine.", Littlefoot's mother assured.

But just when they started getting to safety, another rumble started sounding. Cole's heart sank as the ground shook violently making him almost fall. Then large cracks suddenly formed in the ground as it continued to rock and shake violently.

"Ah, earthquake!", Cole called out.

Even though Cole tried to keep his footing, somehow Littlefoot's mother had vanished and then Sharptooth who had recovered it seemed was on them again! Before long, the trio found themselves on Sharptooth's foot and just got off in time to have the ground break and rise making itself a steep edge as Sharptooth lost his footing and was soon falling backward with the trio on his tail!

(A/N: I'd like to thank Ashoriotrey for their suggestion of their OC idea.)