CHAPTER 335

Reuben hit a patch of mud and maneuvered the dune buggy in such a way that it drifted sideways through the slick wet earth. As the tires grabbed dirt he straightened the vehicle and kept it hurling through the trees at high speed. Reuben wove through metasequoias, and the buggy bounced along their roots. Beside him Seth was still sitting with white knuckles around whatever he could grab to keep himself from jarring about.

"We're almost there, boy," Reuben shouted over the engine.

The whole time his character had been strong and focused, and not once did Seth see him break from that. But now, as he sped across a bracken filled slope, his eyes narrowed, and his focus strayed.

Seth had but a moment to ponder what this look was all about before Reuben slammed on the breaks and cut the wheel sharp. The dune buggy skidded until it slid up the broad base of a metasequoia and lurched to a halt.

Seth gripped the side of his rattled head. "Jesus, man!"

"Hush, boy." Reuben pointed across the bracken.

They were not alone.

Seth had not seen the utahraptor coming. He had not seen it miss the roof of their dune buggy by a mere few inches as Reuben slammed on the breaks and swerved the vehicle. Reuben had. Reuben had seen it all, and it was his quick reaction that had spared them. The only thing was, their dune buggy was now facing the opposite direction they wanted to be going, and there was no time to correct it.

Seth followed Reuben's finger until his eyes came upon Vulture. The utahraptor was hunched as it had just landed from jumping at them. She straightened herself up and brought her feet together. Ruffling her coarse plumage with a shake she fully turned to face the dune buggy.

Reuben revved the engine and said, "hold onto your knickers."

Vulture let out a powerful scream and charged.

The dune buggy bounded off the base of the metasequoia and back the way it came. Ferns whipped against its wheels as it accelerated, and then it was bouncing over tree roots and ruts in the ground. Seth dared a look over his shoulder to see how close Vulture was, but as he turned his head he saw that the utahraptor was already there.

With a sharp bark her teeth slammed right against the caging in front of Seth's face, and the dune buggy lurched off of its passenger side wheels. As they slammed back down, Reuben made a cut to his left and sped between a narrow gap between two trees.

Vulture slipped through right behind them and was catching up quick. She came up on Reuben's flank this time, and as she moved to lunge against the vehicle he cut the wheel right into her and knocked her jaw.

Vulture stumbled back a few paces as she was thrown into a tree trunk, but she was not slowed down for long. Rattling off the bruises, her feet smacked the ground, bounding her forward with more distance on every stride. Soon she was right on their tail again. With a swipe of her fore claws she rocked the caging.

"Jesus! Can't this thing go any faster?" Seth said.

Reuben was fighting to keep them steady as Vulture took another swipe.

"It can go slower." Reuben suddenly buried his foot into the break pedal.

Vulture ran straight into the buggy and tumbled over its roof. As she hit the dirt and rolled ahead of them for some distance Reuben punched the gas. As they hurled toward the stunned utahraptor Seth realized he was aiming to strike her full on with the vehicle. Seth braced himself.

Vulture lifted her head, and her eyes grew wide as she saw the buggy was about to hit her. Reuben made a solid connection with the dinosaur, and the dune buggy thrust her up against a tree trunk. She let out a shriek as she became wedged between the two. Putting the vehicle in reverse Reuben skid his tires through the dirt until they caught, and he steered the buggy away from Vulture. He skid the tires again as he got the buggy moving forward, and it cast a shower of dirt and rocks over Vulture as she tried to get up. Reuben gained traction, and he and Seth sped off in their intended direction once more.

"That ought to slow the bitch down." Reuben said.

Seth craned his head back. Vulture was shaking off the dirt and barreling forward.

"Not for long," Seth said.

"Damn." Reuben looked at Seth. "You got any bright ideas?"

"You're asking me?" Seth's voice cracked. "Why don't you ask your magical watch?"

"He said to ask you, you little son of a bitch, and he doesn't take kindly to the fact that you used air quotes to say magical watch." Reuben's tongue rattled.

"I'm going to die." Seth slumped in his seat. "I am."

"As a matter of fact, he doesn't seem to believe you will." Reuben swerved through the trees as he spoke.

"As a matter of fact, that doesn't seem to make me feel any better." Seth said.

"It should." Reuben replied. "He's fairly accurate about these things, as it were."

The dune buggy shuddered. Vulture had caught up and was raking her claws against the back caging. She ran up along Seth's flank and thrust her shoulder into the vehicle, then she slashed her fore talons. She body checked the buggy again and then backed off a little. Putting more power into her feet she barreled up the broad slope of a metasequoia base and then lunged from the side of its trunk, hurling her body at the dune buggy. Vulture latched on with all four sets of her talons, and the little vehicle started swerving out of control, but before it could crash something else happened.