"What the hell?! Get away from me!"
The crowd shrieked in terror, scattering in all directions.
Huge theropod feet flattened against the hard asphalt road. Carlo came to a halt, tilting his head slightly higher as he continued to sift through the lingering scents in the air.
They were getting closer and closer to the harbor. From the scent signatures alone, Carlo could gather a massive influx of new details; for instance, the sheer volume of dinosaurs at the harbor was staggering.
The scents of herbivores and carnivores clashing together made this unmapped harbor smell like a giant bowl of mixed-up soup. Every kind of dinosaur imaginable was thrown into the mix.
Why is it like this?
Carlo flipped through his limited repository of knowledge, highly doubting that this place was another Primeval Ecological Zone.
"Roar?"
Katyusha seemed to develop a sudden interest in the running snacks scattering around them, though it wasn't the culinary kind of interest.
Why do some humans want to kill us, while other humans are so utterly terrified of us?
Driven by her curiosity, Katyusha decided to ask their all-knowing leader, Carlo. However, she was careful not to disturb him while he was deep in thought. She waited until Carlo started moving again before letting out a soft, questioning rumble.
Hmm?
Carlo wasn't actually moving at a breakneck speed. His colossal size and absurd defense mechanisms came at the cost of top-tier velocity, making it relatively easy for the Giganotosaurus family to keep up with his pace. Furthermore, given Carlo's infinite stamina, even though they were running at full speed right now, none of them felt particularly winded.
This was exactly why they still had the luxury of chatting while on the move.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
Colossal feet pressed into the asphalt, causing thin fractures to spiderweb across the flat roadway.
Carlo's gaze swept over their surroundings. Weak humans were hiding inside fragile structures, peering out at him through the narrow slits of window blinds.
"Roar…"
Because not all humans are the same...
Carlo could only offer a rather abstract explanation. After all, he couldn't fully comprehend why some humans went completely out of their way to make his life miserable, while others chased after his tail just to feed him.
"Roar."
Bottom line, we just need to eat the ones who try to hurt us. Besides, humans aren't very filling anyway, and they taste terrible.
Carlo pondered for a moment before adding a brief clarification, framing his response in a way Katyusha could easily wrap her head around.
"Roar?"
Then what kind of humans are the bad ones?
Katyusha accelerated, gradually moving abreast with Carlo. Under normal circumstances, Carlo always held the point position at the front of the pack, primarily to shield them from any unexpected dangers up ahead.
Yet now, Katyusha was running right alongside him, causing the latter to turn his massive head thoughtfully.
Carlo's yellow pupils reflected Katyusha's silhouette. In that fleeting moment, a strange intuition washed over him, he felt that under certain conditions, her behavioral patterns were looking more and more like his own. It was almost like... a passing of the torch.
Why the hell do I suddenly feel like a senior citizen?
"Roar."
If you look at them and instantly get an appetite, they are definitely bad.
In the end, Carlo chose to trust Katyusha's instincts. Although the size ratio between the two of them hadn't really changed since their very first meeting, Katyusha was undeniably a fully grown adult now. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to let her try leading the pack sometime? The non-hunting kind, of course.
Katyusha had absolutely no idea she had just been unofficially designated as the second-generation leader, though based on how the three youngsters usually interacted... that position had basically been hers all along.
…
Imagine you are a Metriacanthosaurus. Today, you woke up in a completely unfamiliar environment, which is already a terrible start. Fortunately, you managed to track down a lone human to serve as your breakfast. However, right in the middle of your pursuit, the ground starts shaking violently, and you completely ignore it.
But why is this human so insanely fast at running?!
"Aunnng-roar—"
The Metriacanthosaurus unleashed a frustrated, furious roar, completely oblivious to the intense tremors closing in on its position. Its eyes remained locked entirely on the human perched atop the utility pole.
Yasmina clung tightly to the pole, taking a deep, steadying breath as she stared down at the Metriacanthosaurus glaring back at her.
Climbing up to the very top of the pole where there was barely enough room for a single foot, she crouched low, using the momentum to spring forward. Her hands gripped the unpruned branches of a nearby tree as she began navigating her way toward the town, piece by piece.
Even though her days as a competitive athlete were behind her, her core skills hadn't dulled. She was confident she could get through this smoothly and without any—
Snap...
Oh, crap!
The branch supporting her weight suddenly fractured and snapped clean off.
As the years had gone by, Yasmina's weight and body proportions were no longer what they used to be during her athletic peak. If she hadn't reacted with lightning speed to grab another hold, she probably would have plunged down to join the broken branch in its final resting place.
Thud...
The falling branch struck the Metriacanthosaurus right on the head, causing the carnivore to tilt its head upward in sheer irritation.
"Roar!"
It was absolutely seeing red now. It had actually been on the verge of giving up, but now it felt absolutely compelled to eat this puny little creature that dared to make a fool out of it—
"ROAR—"
A dinosaur's territorial roar sounds an awful lot like a declaration of sovereignty. Naturally, its own roar received an immediate, deafening reply. Must be an intruder, right?
Wait, no. This doesn't feel like my territory... Don't tell me, I'm the intruder?
The Metriacanthosaurus stiffened, slowly turning its head toward the source of the sound. One look was all it took to nearly scare it to death on the spot.
A colossal, mountain-sized apex predator was charging directly at it. Flanking the titan were four other predators, each countless times larger than itself, all looking incredibly eager and aggressive as they stormed forward.
Are you kidding me?! Aren't territorial disputes supposed to be a one-on-one duel? Why the hell did you bring your entire family to a fight?!
The Metriacanthosaurus felt its legs turn to jelly instantly. Failing to keep its balance, it collapsed to the dirt, scrambling and rolling back onto its feet before sprinting frantically into the jungle, desperate to shake off the literal demons hot on its heels.
Carlo caught sight of the fleeing carnivore, a look of sheer bewilderment flashing across his eyes. He hadn't even threatened the dinosaur; he had merely been indicating that he had no intention of fighting and was just passing through.
Don't tell me... am I really that terrifying to other dinosaurs?
The pack of Giganotosaurus thundered through the jungle, churning the sea of green foliage into chaos.
"Aunnng-roar——"
STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!!!
Finding its escape route unfortunately overlapping yet again with the trajectory of the Giganotosaurus family, the Metriacanthosaurus let out a heart-wrenching, blood-curdling shriek. Even a human would have been able to deeply feel the raw, unadulterated agony in its voice.
A gentle breeze rustled through the treetops, making the leaves sway softly. Yasmina scrambled down from the massive tree she had used as a hiding spot. She stared blankly at the massive footprints stamped deep into the earth, looking in the direction where the Lord of the Primeval Ecological Zone had just vanished.
Please, someone come and treat humanity's post-traumatic stress disorder. We will literally do anything.
Engine roaring.
"Yaz?"
"Ben? Sammy? How on earth did you guys find me here?"
The speeding red van suddenly pulled off a sharp drift, screeching to a halt right beside Yasmina. Looking at the two familiar faces, Yasmina's initial shock instantly gave way to a surge of relief and joy.
"Uh... we can explain that part later. Get in, quick! It's not safe out here."
Ben peered out nervously, scanning their surroundings in all directions. If he hadn't been blessed with the looks of a bright, handsome guy, his shifty behavior would easily get him mistaken for a car thief.
Then again, was it really a good idea to tell Yaz right now that they had been tracking her phone's signal?
———————
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over here ——— pa-tre-on.c-om/AlexandrusTL [remove the hyphen for normal access]