The Dinosaur King: Chapter 12 - Valley Desolation
At Dino Rock, Victoria, the Tyrannosaurs can only be cooped up resting in their cave with Savage Predators patrolling every corner, all except Sue, who is now a young adult female Tyrannosaurus watched how the Landscape of the Valley changed from Beautiful and Paradise to a Desolate Dystopia.
Sue watched as her home was turned into a wasteland with no way in or out, with the Savage Predators patrolling the lands.
"Sue, would you join us?" Victoria spoke as Sue turned around to face her.
"Victoria, how can we live like this? As of now, Proximus and his army have chased away the last of the herds. Will there be nothing for us left?!" Sue said in fury.
Soon, Proximus arrived on Wild Rock with his army, who brought in a dead styracosaurus they killed as he looked at the Tyrannosaurs, especially Victoria, as they walked past them, but Sue just glared at him.
Once out of earshot of him, Sue continued. "You see, we have to do something, Victoria. We have to fight!"
"Sue. Proximus is the king." Victoria said in assurance to the young adult Tyrannosaur.
"But you are our queen! We should leave before it's too late!" Sue replied now with anger. "We can't stay here to starve to death."
"We must all stay together and protect the Valley of Dinosaurs. This is our home. We must never abandon it." Victoria told Sue that she prefers not to fight Proximus than do anything about it.
"This isn't the home I remember." Sue sighed.
"Don't worry, our time will come, Sue. Be patient." Victoria told her calmly. Then Carrie approaches the queen.
"Queen Victoria. The king wishes to see you." Carrie said.
"Don't go," Sue protested to Victoria.
"I'm not afraid of him," Victoria said as she stood up and walked to Proximus.
She was weak, malnourished, and her bones were being exposed due to malnutrition, while the Savage Predators surrounded her to create a wall between her and the other Tyrannosaurs. Then Victoria approaches Proximus, who's eating the flesh of styracosaurus at the promontory of Dino Rock.
The Scarred Tyrannosaurus notices her presence and turns to her, "Well, what a surprise? Won't you join me, Victoria? There's plenty to go around."
"No thanks, but you're overhunting, Proximus," Victoria said in protest.
"I've simply perfected the kill. With the help of my army," he argued back as he wasn't much of a good hunter, but with his army around, he got good at it, a little too good.
"You're killing everything, there will be nothing left!" the Queen said in defiance.
"Don't you see yet? There is nobody to challenge me. We can finally take whatever we want." Proximus told her, since there are no dinosaurs or prehistoric creatures around, along with his Savage Predator army protecting the land, he thought no invaders would come and take over, compared to last time.
"What do you mean, 'We'?" Victoria asked.
"Long ago, you chose Scotty over me," Proximus said. He has not forgotten that he fell in love with Victoria first, but she had feelings for Scotty back when they were young; with him out of the way, this was his chance. "But now there is a new king. So stop being so selfish."
"You are the selfish one." Victoria scolded, calling out his attitude.
"Listen, I can be reasonable, but I can be unreasonable," the Scarred T. rex said with blood in his jaws. "The other Tyrannosaurs look up to you. As long as you resist, they will reject me. Take your place by my side, and we will feast together."
"I will never be your queen!" Victoria shouted at him.
Upon hearing this, Proximus stops and finishes eating the Triceratops meat and standing up, and looks at her before announcing, "Then from now on... the tyrannosaurs will eat after the raptors. And they don't leave much behind. But if you want food, you must hunt for yourselves!
Then the rest of the savage predators ran off to the styracosaurus' body and started to feast together, as Victoria looked in shock at the new law that Proximus had already created.
Sue bares her teeth in anger, but then she lowers her down hopelessly and sighs, "This can't go on like this…"
Her mother, Barbara, came to her side, comforting her and told her, "I know, Sue... I know... Somehow... We need to get some help…"
. . . . .
At nightfall with the full moon, Zara looked worried at the moon, and thinking about what Scotty or Tristan would do, suddenly she heard Anton's voice in the cave of Dino Rock.
Inside Dino Rock, Proximus and Carrie were relaxing as Anton sang sadly. Anton has become a nuisance for Proximus over several years, and he has put Anton in a cage made of some dinosaur's ribcage. Carrie wanted to fatten him up so she and the other savages could eat him later when the time was right, to which Proximus agreed.
Anton: (Singing) Nobody knows
The trouble I've seen
Nobody knows
My sorrow…
"Oh, Anton, do lighten up," said Proximus. He whacked a bone with his left arm at Anton, and it clattered against the cage. "Sing something with a little... bounce in it."
Anton thinks for a moment. Then he sings, but sarcastically.
Anton: (Singing, but sarcastically) I Love You
You Love Me-
"No! No. Anything but that!" shouted Proximus, interrupting him.
"You know we hate that song!" Carrie snarled in agreement. Anton thinks again. Then he holds up a wing as a tune comes to him.
Anton: (Singing) I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts (diddely-dee-dee)
There they are a-standing in a row...
Proximus and Carrie now start to enjoy the song so much that they start to join in.
Anton, Carrie, and Proximus: (Singing) Big ones, small ones, some as big as your head...
While they both continued to sing, Anton groaned and muttered, "Oh... I would never have had to do this for Scotty."
Unfortunately, Proximus and Carrie heard him. "What?! What did you say?" said Proximus quickly and angrily.
Anton then begins to cower under his anger. "Oh, nothing!" said Anton.
"You said his Name, didn't you?!" Carrie shouted angrily at the Dino-bird.
"You know the law: Never, ever mention THAT name in my presence. I... am... the KING!" yelled Proximus, baring his sharp teeth at him. The Scarred Tyrannosaur's face was so close to the cage that his breath blew Anton up against the wall.
"Yes, sire. You ARE the king. I... I… Well, I only mentioned it to illustrate the differences in your royal managerial approaches", said Anton with a nervous laugh.
"Calm down, take deep breaths," said Carrie as the Scarred Tyrannosaur took deep breaths and calmed himself down.
"Thanks, I need that," Proximus replied to Carrie as they sat back down.
"Is something bothering you?!" the Utahraptor asked.
"Nothing much, after all those years, I managed to achieve my goal of being King, I wish my parents would be proud to see me like this," said Proximus with glee before turning to sorrow if only his parents were alive, he wasn't the best Tyrannosaur in his youth, and asked, "But here I am at the pinnacle of the Valley, but the view looks bleak, what's wrong with this picture?!"
"You are in it, Sire?!" Anton asked.
"It's just I need to be bucked up!" Proximus said to himself.
"Well, you're already Bucked up Royally!" the Dino-bird shouted in his cage.
"It's about Victoria, isn't it?!" Carrie asked.
"Yes, she still refuses my advances; she was the perfect mate for him until you know who stole her from me," Proximus said. "I keep pushing her, but still she refuses."
"Don't worry, it just takes time, and eventually she has no other choice but to accept you as your queen," Carrie said reassuringly. "Not like that certain T. rex whose name cannot be said and who was your brother."
The Scarred Tyrannosaur sighed before turning to Carrie with sadness. "My brother, I should've not rescued him in the first place, and my father was right, he did betray me," Proximus explained. "He took the love of my life, my mother's love, even my father, who he hated, loved him, and everyone all loved and adored him, and I was left with nothing. He took Everything away from me!"
"I came to learn that some creatures were born to be adored while the rest of us get NOTHING!" the Scarred T. rex roared before calming down and speaking in a normal tone. "But I showed him by getting him out of the way and by taking everything that I was destined to have away from him is now mine."
"I see, it was nice you allowed us savages back in the valley when he banished us; he took away our right to hunt and live here. It's something we both have in common," Carrie replied, understanding Proximus's pain.
"Hey, Boss!" shouted a voice. Proximus and Carrie look and see the three Velociraptors, Oyuun, Torgan, and Bati, coming inside and towards them. And they weren't happy about something. The Theropods both know what this will be about, and unlike Ryder and Emery, it was always complaining about the food.
"Oh, what is it this time?" groaned Proximus.
"We got a bone to pick with you," said Torgan.
"I'll handle this," said Oyuun to Torgan. Then she turned to Proximus and said, "Proximus, Carrie, there's no food, no water...".
"Yeah, it's dinner time, and we ain't got no stinkin' entrees!" said Torgan.
"It's the Tyrannosaurs' job to do the hunting..." said Proximus, exasperated, and making a helpless gesture.
"It's their turn to hunt if they don't want to live on scraps!" Carrie added to her Cronies.
"Yeah, but they won't go hunt!" said Torgan.
"Oh... eat Anton," groaned Proximus.
"And by the looks of him, he's fattened up already," Carrie said in agreement.
"Oh, you wouldn't want me. I'd be so tough and gamey and... eeww…," said Anton nervously.
"Oh, Anton, don't be ridiculous. All you need is a little garnish," chuckled Proximus.
"And I thought things were bad under Scotty," whispered Torgan to Oyuun. Scotty, once again, heard the insult.
"What did you say?!" said Proximus quickly and angrily again.
"I said Sc..." said Torgan, but he was interrupted when Oyuun smiled and threatened him to remind him what he was saying. Torgan quickly changes. "I said, uh... 'Buddy?'"
"Good. Now get out," said Proximus.
The raptors started to walk out, but paused for a moment when Torgan looked back and said, "Mm... yeah, but- we're still hungry".
"OUT!" roared Proximus. The raptors quickly ran out as Bati let out a crazy laugh.
. . . . .
That Night, Proximus and his army were all fast asleep with the Tyrannosaur sleeping on the Promontory while several savage predators patrolled the Rocky Hill for escapees. Little did they know one would break out.
Proximus was sleeping on the promontory while emerging from the Cave where the Tyrannosaurs slept was Sue. Seeing that no one, not even Queen Victoria, is doing anything to overthrow Proximus, the Female Tyrannosaur had decided to take matters into her own claws and escape Dino Rock and the Valley and get help.
Sue creeped past them, her feet had pads to silence her moves. Sue hides as two Deinonychus stride past. After they leave, she slips away once more, and by then, Proximus wakes up, sensing something is wrong.
Sue continues to creep along until she hears a roar from Proximus from above and hides in the shadow of Dino Rock as the scarred-faced T. rex stands up. Sue stares up at Proximus while frozen still. Proximus sniffs the air, then strides away. Sue continues creeping along, pausing briefly when she sees raptors sitting nearby, and as she continues on, only to pull up short at the sight of Anton, who had escaped his ribcage prison.
"Just what do you think you are doing, young lady?" Anton asked, wondering why she was up that late while the T. rex strides past him.
"Go away, Zazu. I'm going to find help," Sue whispered as Anton hops after her.
"I will very much not go away. I am sworn to protect you and must order you back to bed," he whispered scoldingly.
"I don't need protecting anymore," Sue whispered back. "I'm not a rexling."
Just as Sue rounds a corner, only to spot Proximus standing close by, who bellow growls. Sue backs away with Anton as the Scarred T. rex stalks toward her hiding place. The T. rex and Archaeopteryx look behind them, where the hyenas are creeping closer and closer.
Anton, now in the middle of this, realizes that the female Tyrannosaur might be right after all and whispers to her. "Quick, Sue, go now while I'll distract them.
Upon hearing Proximus' growl, he rounds the corner and bellow roaring, but he pulls up short as he runs into the Raptors, who flinch and warble backwards. Seeing it's just some of his raptors, Proximus continues to sniff and look around, not noticing that Sue was hiding on a ledge above him and the hyenas as he begins to climb towards her. Sue bunches her muscles, as if readying for a fight.
Proximus snarls to attack, only for Anton to fly into his face, halting his advance.
"Uh, Proximus. Uh, wonderful to see you. Uh, sorry to drop in like this." Anton asked sheepishly.
Proximus wondered how he escaped his cage, bellow roared and snapping his jaws in anger at Anton as he flew away.
"Ah!" the Archaeopteryx shrieked as he led Proximus and the raptors away from Nala as he landed and asked, "Have I ever told you about my brother who thought he was a Shuvuuia?
As Proximus gets closer, Anton flies off again as he yelps, as Proximus and the raptors chase Anton away from Dino Rock, ready to capture him and bring him back to his cage.
Sue climbs off her ledge and runs off into the fern prairie away from Dino Rock, heading to the valley's borders.
From atop Dino Rock, Sue watches her leave and sighs, "Sue…"
Perhaps they should fight back, but how her husband Scotty gave them faith and hope. But now with Proximus and his army, it may not be the case unless Sue can escape and come back with help.
The Female Tyrannosaurus ran as her feet could carry her to the Valley Border. She was noticed by Fangtooth and her family as they smiled with a glimmer of hope as they ran after her.
The Female Tyrannosaur turned around to see the Giganotosaurs following her, "Fangtooth, what are you and your family doing?"
"We saw you escape and thought you might need some help?" Fangtooth replied.
"So we're going with you!" Caroline added.
"Thanks, I need all the help I can get," Sue said with gratitude.
"We don't have much time before the Savages realize you're gone!" Leonard said as he ran up to her.
"Quickly, we must head for the borders!" Reuben told everyone as they headed to the mountain range that borders the Valley.
Soon, Sue and her allies were on their way to save their home from the tyrannical rule of Proximus, but little did they know they would meet a face they thought they would never see again, and perhaps maybe the key to restoring the Valley of Dinosauria and overthrowing the current king.
Spitfire watched them leave the Valley from his Cave, just like Fangtooth and her family. He went into hiding when Proximus became king and knew he wouldn't be allowed near Dino Rock. He had a slight smile, seeing that Sue would get outside help to end Proximus' reign, but was a bit sad with no heirs to the throne who would rule Dinosauria. Perhaps there is something else that the Great Kings have in mind for him, of someone who is alive and can bring peace back to the Valley.