Fear gripped at her for a moment as she lay down, but as the rain continued, she realized it was only a typical rain storm not strong enough to create a flood, allowing her to sigh in relief both for herself and the old one. Stepping out of the shelter, she looked around, trying to figure out where to go. She spotted something in her cover from the corner of her eyes. Past the vines and moss that grew on the stone, she realized that the stone itself was smooth rather than the rough edges you would typically find on rocks. Not only that, but there were strange cracks within the stones themselves, some unrecognizable due to age or damage while others still held their form.
Granted, she didn't know what these strange cracks were nor meant, but it was unusual, to say the least. Below the larger stone, she found a smaller one. One shaped like a creature crouching on its hind legs, its head and front legs stretched to the sky. What a strange rock, indeed. She shook her head, clearing it of thought of the peculiar rock as she remembered her reason for coming out here. Glancing again at the strange stones, she turned and continued searching.
The hours passed quickly without her realizing with still no luck for a meal. At this point, her stomach was growling loud enough to wake the dead, her thoughts turning into ones telling her to give up and return to the old male. A scent hit her then, the fresh smell of blood. Her mouth watered, her caution rushing out of her as her legs carried her forward toward the smell. As she excitedly sprang out of a bush, she came upon the dead remains of a feathered creature with long legs and a long neck. She had not seen such a creature before, but its chest had been torn and cleaned out of its innards.
Its skin is a mixture of reds with black stripes running down the back of its neck and back. She could make out two stubby arms tucked up against its chest, almost barely visible. Its snout was sunk in and rounded, while two small horns graced the top of its head. What drew her attention the most was the razor-sharp fangs that protruded from its upper lip as its golden eyes focused on the body she still clung to. She swallowed again, not daring to move a single inch as her heart hammered in her chest.
The creature's eyes scanned the body closely, shifting back and forth before it gave the body a couple of sniffs. To her relief, it lowered its head back to the ground after a moment. She waited a few moments before giving the meat chunk in her mouth a good tug; however, the creature's head lifted again at the sound of tearing flesh. Again she froze, not daring to move. Its upper lip curled up as a deep growl vibrated from its throat as it once again scanned the body for the source of the sound. Once again, it didn't find her and lowered its head. She took the chance, tugging at the meat once again, ripping a chunk more considerable to the old male's size than what she had intended to pull off, which flopped to the ground with a loud thud.
Finally, after failing to find her, its footsteps began to recede, disappearing back in the direction that the body lay still. She once again sighed in relief before cautiously following after it. After all, she had to get that meat chunk; the old male needed it. This time, however, she was much more cautious in her approach, keeping to the bushes as she drew near. The creature was still on its feet, its head buried into the chest of the body as it pulled off chunks to eat. Her eyes shifted to the meat chunk beside the creature's left leg. Perhaps she could...
She stepped out of the bush, but the creature's head spun to the side, eyes scanning the area, making her jump back just in time to not get caught. Okay, this was going to be trickier than she thought. She began to look around for a possible way to get to the meat; the only thing near her was a small rock on the ground by her tail. That wouldn't do anything to get the meat for her. Maybe it could...Lowering herself closer to the ground, she glanced back and smacked the rock hard with her tail making it fly through the air and crack against a tree off to her right.
The creature's head spun in that direction momentarily before heading off to investigate. Ha! She couldn't believe that it had actually worked. Now she just had to be quick before it came back. Not wasting any time, she grabbed the meat chunk before dragging it back to her destination. It was heavy, thicker than she had planned, but at least it was something. If she could get it safely back to the old male without being caught by something, he would have a somewhat decent meal than he was used to getting from her. It would be a challenge, though.
"Do I even want to know?" He questioned her, only to let out a deep sigh in response. "You know what, never mind...I really don't want to know." He added before scoping the meat up and swallowing it whole.
His body shifted then, as he began to try to stand; however, as soon as he put even the slightest amount of weight on his lame leg, a deep vibrating growl of pain escaped him, his leg instantly collapsing, sending him right back to the ground with a loud thud. A deep exhale of breath left him, causing dirt to fly up from the ground before he shifted to a more comfortable spot and closed his eyes again. The young rex, having watched this quietly frowned. He definitely wasn't going to be moving tonight. They would have to hope that nothing that would be dangerous to them came along. She would be a much easier meal than he would be, even with him being injured.
Finally able to breathe normally, she shifted to a more comfortable position, scooting closer to the old male for safety precautions before laying her head down. However, sleep did not come easy to her as the night creature's calls echoed all around her, the image of the giant creature she had stolen the meat from still playing in her mind. A sigh left her, slowly though her eyelids began to feel heavy.
As the sunlight began to peek over the horizon, the young female was awoken by the pained growls of the old rex, causing her to peel open her eyes and give out a wide yawn. Through sleepy eyes, she could see the large form of the aging male trying to stand; each time any weight was put on his lame leg, it instantly tried to buckle and make him collapse. However, he seemed to be determined to get up and move today as she gave out another yawn.
She watched as he began to try again, and when his leg began to buckle, he quickly shifted his weight to his other leg, allowing him to stand. She was glad he was standing, though she could tell it was with great effort and pain. She followed him as he limped slowly to the water's edge before leaning down to drink the cold liquid. She followed suit, feeling the coldness of the water run down her throat and into her stomach. It was a weird feeling that made her shiver slightly.
Once he had his fill, the old male turned and began to limp into the forest, passing through the spot the creature hiding in the darkness last night had been before continuing on. The young female quickly followed suit, though it didn't take long to catch up to the hurt old one; she wouldn't leave his side even if he didn't want her there. He was her only protection, after all. As they traveled through the trees, the day animal calls entered her ears, causing her to glance up at the old one, but he seemed to pay no mind to the sounds around them. Guess nothing was a danger to them right now, apparently.
A clearing appeared before them, one that the old one didn't hesitate to step into. Since he didn't smell anything dangerous nearby, being out in the open wasn't an issue. However, he stopped shortly after entering, his nostrils flaring as something on the wind caught his attention. She began to scent the air, trying to figure out what had caught his attention. The familiar scent of rain didn't take long to fill her lungs, though the skies were clear. She watched as the old male shook himself before continuing, making her follow him again.
Their travels were boring and uneventful, which was good, though it also bored the young female. Rushing ahead of the old male, she began to chase a butterfly, snapping her fangs at it as she tried to catch it out of the air so far to no success. She kicked off the ground, getting as high in the air as she could, trying to catch it again though something hard hit one of her feet, throwing her off balance and making her tumble head first into the ground, the momentum sending the rest of her body flipping over after it. She quickly stood, expecting some dangerous animal to be standing there, having attacked her suddenly, only to find a rock protruding from the ground and the old male staring at her.
"Congrats..." He spoke up, looking bored. "You've been killed by a rock." He added before continuing his travels.
She blinked in confusion, looking between the rock and him before giving herself another shake and following after him. Okay, chasing butterflies was no longer fun. She sighed as she fell into step just behind him, her head lowering slightly as her boredom instantly resurfaced. Something moved over her head, casting a slim shadow. Her head snapped up, trying to figure out what it was, only to discover the old male's tail was shifting from side to side over her head as he walked. A smile came to her face as she began to jump into the air, trying to catch the tip of his tail this time.
It was much more complicated than she thought it would be; his tail continuously moving side to side while he continued to walk straight made it hard to actually get an excellent position to catch it. She stopped momentarily while following the old male, thinking of how she would capture this dangerous foe. Her eyes followed his tail, calculating. She quickened her pace slightly and tensed her muscles before launching as high into the air as possible.
Her jaws opened as his tail headed back in her direction, her eyes closed, and the next moment she felt her fangs dig into flesh, a loud roar leaving the old one's jaws. Her eyes opened only to find herself hanging off the ground from the end of the old one's tail. She was now forced to hold on as the old one stopped and looked back behind him, his tail moving closer to his head as she dangled.
"What the hell!" He snarled at her, lips pulling back over his fangs. "Get off now!" He warned.
Her eyes shifted to the ground where she hung, the ground seeming like it was a million feet below her. Her eyes then went back up to meet his own, her head slightly shaking before she quickly readjusted her grip on his tail to keep from falling off. His gaze on her narrowed, his snarl deepening. He shook his tail, trying to peel her off of him, but she clung onto him for dear life, swinging back and forth this way and that as she was shaken.
"Will you let go already!" He growled out, continuing to shake her.
"Young male..." He muttered to himself, his full attention now on the young male by the trees, no longer paying attention to the female still hanging from his tail.
A loud roar left the old one as he charged towards the small male, his stride slightly off due to his limping. The smile on the small male's face instantly vanished as the old one rushed at him, realizing he was now in danger. As the old male drew closer to the younger one just about in attack range, a pair of glowing eyes appeared out of the shadows of the trees behind the young male. A giant female rex's head suddenly burst from the trees, its jaws parted as a loud warning roar vibrated out of its throat, fangs bared, ready to sink into the old male's flesh.
As the looming threat and the loud warning roar reached him, followed by the sizeable protective form that now stood over his target, the old male's eyes widened as he tried to slow his speed down. The protective jaws of the mother rex loomed closer, causing the old male's body to twist sideways as his feet skid across the loose dirt on the ground to stop himself. He braced himself for the blow but sighed in relief as her jaws snapped shut just inches from his flesh.
He circled her a couple of times, sniffing at her, and still she didn't dare move. When no attack came, she slowly relaxed, her curiosity beginning to surface as she followed his movements. Now the two of them began to circle each other, sniffing at one another before the young male's tail went upward and his upper body went downwards. She wasn't sure what he was doing. Was he finally about to attack? As if to answer her question, he suddenly pounced on her, knocking her over and onto her side. She didn't hesitate, jumping back up onto her feet.
"FEESH!" She cried out loudly, rushing to the old male's larger form for familiar protection, zipping right between the mother's legs and behind the old male.
She hid there, though after a moment, peeked her head out from the side, eyes trained on the smaller male who stood where she left him with a frown of rejection, head lowered pitifully. The mother blinked in surprise, seeing the young female hiding behind the old one; her eyes shifted from the smaller female to the old male, who turned his gaze to the creature hiding behind him before moving it back onto her. She was confused, and it was clear. She had never seen a male protect a youngster who was not his offspring. Usually, males eat the youngsters since they are an easy meal.
"He was trying to play with you, idiot. Not attack you." The old male finally spoke to the young female hiding behind his leg, but his eyes remained locked on the mother.
"Wanna play?" The young male asked, his voice curious and full of hope, a smile growing on his lips.
She didn't know how to respond; words were still new to her after all. She noticed his smile fading the longer she didn't answer before something lit up in his eyes as he spotted a butterfly fluttering past. Without waiting, he quickly took off after it and began to jump up to try and catch it, pausing as he glanced back at her, the smile still there. A smile came to her lips as she finally got what he was talking about and chased him, the two youngsters chasing after the butterfly and trying to catch it.
The old male and the mother watched the two youngsters running and jumping this way and that after the butterfly until they collided head first into one another and collapsed, making the mother wince slightly and the old male groan with a look of 'seriously' coming to his face. However, his attention shifted to the mother as she looked at him before she began to back away and lay away from the old one. He did the same, laying down where he was with a groan, grateful he wouldn't get his hide chewed on. Though he was massive compared to her and more experienced in battle, he knew she would've gotten the best of him with his leg the way it was. This at least gave him a chance to rest and gave the young female a few moments to play with someone instead of trying to play with him.
"I ot it!" The young male called out past a mouth full of fish until the fish suddenly began wiggling worse, its tail coming up and slapping the young male hard across the right side of his face, making him let out a startled yell and drop it. The fish dropped back into the water with a plop before swimming off. The young female frowned and stepped towards the young male to check on him as he growled at his stinging face. "Why you little..." he growled out, as he began to chase after it. He only got a few steps before suddenly disappearing below the surface as the ground gave out. His head popped up a moment later, an irritated look on his face. The young female couldn't help herself as she fell over to her side laughing. He looked so funny!
A loud clap of thunder echoed through the valley, causing both youngsters and the adults to glance towards the sky. Dark clouds were beginning to head their way, flashing lights sparking within. The mother rex rose and turned to face the tree line, though she glanced back at the youngsters.
"Sivaas, let's go." She called out, making the young male turn his attention to her.
"Awww mama, 5 more minutes?" He called back, getting back onto solid ground and shaking himself free of the water clinging to his scales.
"Now Sivaas," She growled back at him, lips pulling upwards.
"Aw man....see you friend." He told the young female, before rushing off after his mother, who disappeared into the trees. The young female watched him disappear with a frown, though her head tilted to the side in confusion hearing the name.
"Siva?" She questioned herself. However, another clap of thunder sounded, one much louder than the last, making her jump to her feet and rush to get to the old male's side as he slowly rose to his feet with a pained groan before heading for the tree line himself. "What a...Siva?" She questioned as they walked, looking up at the old one.
"Siva?" He questioned her, confused, though after thinking for a moment realizing what she was asking. "Ah you mean Sivaas. It was the young male's name." He answered.
"What a name?" She continued to question.
"It's what mothers give their offspring after they hatch. It's what you answer when speaking to someone." He answered, glancing at the sky through the treetops as the sun began to disappear the closer the storm got.
"So you name Feesh?" She asked.
"Ye-," He began to answer before he realized what she asked, his nose wrinkling in disgust. "What? No, geez. My name is not Feesh. That's what you call me cause you're an idiot." He returned.
"Then what name?" She asked, making him sigh.
"You sure are asking a lot of questions." He returned. His gaze glanced at her for a moment, seeing her watching him patiently for his name making, him sigh again and turn his attention back to where they were heading. "Sty'rik," He finally answered after a long moment.
"Ste...ik." She tried to pronounce it.
"Styrik," He corrected.
"Good, about time. No more calling me Feesh, got it?" He told her, glancing down at her again, only to see her nod in understanding. "Good." He returned, turning his attention back ahead of them.
"Styrik?" She called out.
"Hm?" He returned with a sigh.
"What my name?" She asked curiously.
"Don't know, don't care." He returned, making her stop momentarily with an irritated look before a clap of thunder made her race to his side again.
Rain began to pelt the ground, making Sty'rik quicken his pace slightly. Ahead of them, he spotted a thick tree with low branches, which he made his way under before finally lowering himself to the ground. He wasn't familiar with this area and didn't know where any good shelter locations were, so this would have to do. Granted, it didn't block out the rain entirely, his scales were still getting pelted by the rain droplets, but at least the thick branches kept out most of the rain. The young female quickly followed him, curling herself into a ball out of touching range as the rain continued to coat her scales. She knew by now that Sty'rik wouldn't let her cuddle with him. As another thunderclap stuck, she buried her nose deeper under her tail and sighed. Stupid rain....
The young female growled as some blood-sucking insects decided to make a meal of her, attaching themselves to her scales. Rising to her feet, she shook herself, trying to shake off the irritants from her flesh. The spots they had bit now caused her scales to itch which only furthered her annoyance with them. The shaking worked, but soon they would reattach themselves to her again, their wings creating an annoying buzzing-like sound to enter her ears. Sty'rik sighed as he lay there watching her try to shake the bloodsuckers from her flesh while he began to get bombarded by the little buzzing insects.
When they began to get too annoying for him, he finally rose to his feet, giving himself a light shake before stepping out from under the tree and into the open. He didn't go far, just a few paces where the ground was softened into a muddy puddle. The young female watched as he lowered himself to the ground and began to roll his large mass around in the mud, coating his scales in the cold dark goo. She started noticing that the more the mud-covered him, the less the bloodsuckers gathered around him. When every inch of him was covered in mud, he rose to his feet and began to limp off into the trees without a word.
The young female didn't waste time running over and flopping into the mud. A sigh left her as soon as the cool goo hit her itching scales. A smile came to her lips before she began to roll around, coating her body as well. Like Sty'rik, the bloodsuckers did not want anything to do with her as soon as her scales were hidden by the mud. Her smile grew as she dove into a deeper part of the mud hole face first, only for her head to shoot up, a disgusted look crossed her face as she exhaled, a spray of mud flying out of her nose. An involuntary shiver ran through her; yep....that was disgusting.
As she began to drink, her old enemy came back beneath the surface, drawing closer to the water's edge and her nose, though the slightest movement from the young female would cause it to quickly swim off to deeper waters. She couldn't help but mentally laugh; the little fish wasn't so scary. She didn't know why she had been so scared of it now that she thought about it. Shaking her head slightly, she closed her eyes and continued to drink the cool liquid. That is, until a splash entered her ears, water dripping off her face, causing her head to snap up and her eyes to open. The fish's tail disappeared below the surface again, not far off.
As the water dripped off her face, so did the mud protecting her scales. She glared at the water as she realized this and the small swimming creature slowly creeping its way closer and closer beneath the surface. All right, that was the last straw. Lips pulling back over her fangs, she rushed forward, snapping her fangs into the water, trying to catch her mortal enemy. The fish led her back and forth across the shallows of the water, remaining just out of her reach each time before it changed direction and began to lead her into deeper waters where Sivaas had fallen in.
His head finally rose, his eyes blinking to adjust his old vision a bit better as his focus was now fully trained on the log as it slowly moved closer and closer, barely even noticeable. His eyes narrowed to try and get a better look before opening wide. Since when were logs white? Another part of the log appeared out of the water, Sty'rik instantly noticing a golden eye attached to the end staring at the young female as it continued to get closer. He rushed to get up quicker than he intended to and growled deeply in pain as a sharp snap came from his injured leg, followed by an overwhelming wave of pain. He clenched his fangs and fought past it, getting to his feet.
However, each quick step he tried to make toward the young female was agony. His jaws parted to call out and warn her, but this was too serious of a situation to jokingly call her smalls. He had to think of something fast; the creature was almost within striking range now. His heart began to pound more quickly, and panic set in. A breath rushed into his lungs as he took another step.
"SMALLS, GET AWAY NOW!" He roared out loudly. Thankfully, hearing him yell, her head snapped around in his direction, a confused look on her face as to why he was screaming. Her body turned slightly, her left side now facing the water.
"But....mean feesh..." She returned, not moving from where she was, glancing back at the water where she had last seen said creature. That's when she noticed the white form creeping towards her in the water.
"SMALLS!" He shouted as he finally reached the water's edge, his fangs snapping down onto the croc's tail before it could entirely disappear. His fangs went deep into its flesh, allowing him to pull the creature out of the water as he began to back up, ignoring the pain shooting through his leg.
The croc's lower half slid onto the solid ground before the rest sprang out of the water, body twisting around so the croc's fangs could try to snap at his face. He released its tail just in time to avoid the hit, the crocs deep grabbling hiss entering his ears. His eyes shifted to the water's edge just behind the croc, where the young female's body lay unmoving before his attention was forced back onto the croc as it launched forward, trying to land an attack again.
The croc cried out as the leg snapped off from its body, blood rushing from the opening the leg was ripped from. It twisted its upper body to hiss and bared its open jaws to Sty'rik until Sty'rik dropped the half-mangled hind leg to the ground and bared his fangs back. The croc's jaws began to close before it gave one last hiss and swung around, moving toward where the young female's body still lay, leaving a trail of blood behind it. Sty'rik once again didn't hesitate, rushing ahead of him to stand between it and the young female. His jaws parted, letting out another mighty roar in the croc's face. With a hiss in return, the croc sidestepped the old rex and limped its way further away before slipping back into the lake's depths.
Sty'rik turned, his attention shifting entirely to the young female who still had yet to move behind him. His eyes scanned her for any signs of life, taking note of the bite mark now upon her upper thigh, which was heavily dripping with blood. His gaze shifted to her chest, but no movement indicated she was breathing.
"Smalls?" He called out, leaning forward to lightly nudge her with the tip of his nose. Still, she didn't move or breathe. A deep sigh left him realizing he was too late. He began to mentally curse his lame leg for slowing him down, making it so he couldn't get to her in time.
Memories began to flood his brain then, the horrified look in her eyes when they first met, how she had followed him around despite the danger he held towards her, how she had constantly tried to cuddle against him for warmth only for him to push her away...He clenched his fangs, irritated with himself for not being kinder to her, before another sigh left him, sadness coming to his eyes as he leaned down to nuzzle her momentarily.
"Sty...rik" He stopped in his tracks hearing, that familiar voice whisper his name. His head turned to look behind him, but there was no difference in her. Had he imagined it because he wanted her to be alive? After a moment, there was still no sign from her. He shook his head and sighed once more, clenching his fangs.
"Darn it, kid..." He cursed, closing his eyes, though it was more to himself than to her.