Isla Sorna Stories: Rebirth

[The Kingpin]

"Greener pastures?" rumbled Crusher thoughtfully as he paced towards the Troodon, leaning forward so that he was only just out of striking distance of the Troodon, orange-wrapped eyes slowly fading back to yellow as he calmed. "Do you really intend to take me for a fool? The facts speak against against you, Troodon. I've been told your scent could be picked up on the edge of the territory, fresh. Thrasher's driven most of his rivals towards the edges of the island. I'm sure you're aware of what that meant for your kind. So tell me.....What sense would there be in a Troodon pack heading towards the edge...?" growled Crusher lowly...

[dinoman666]

"Ah yes, Thrasher..." Nighteye hissed thoughtfully. "I overheard your little rant about going after him. Driving his rivals to the edge, you say? Sage advice, Rex. Perhaps we will go to the center. So many big predators competing for space out here could be disastrous..." It was a half-truth. Nighteye didn't know the full extent of Thrasher's operations on the island, but now he was getting a better idea. No wonder these Rexes were so suspicious...

[The Kingpin]

"You would have to be a particularly ill informed pack to not know of the super-predators occupying the outer reaches of the island, or of the unusual concentration of packs near the centre of the island as a result" rumbled Crusher as he eyed the Troodon with a studious gaze. "Your route leads back towards the island's core...Do you really expect me to believe you're as clueless as you pretend to be?" snarled the Tyrannosaur...

[dinoman666]

"That depends," Nighteye replied, rather plainly. "Just how clueless do you think I am, Rex? My pack does not usually leave the confines of our nesting area. We don't much care for the business of outsiders. However, I must admit that my curiosity got the better of me. A mistake I will not make again, if what you say is true."

[The Kingpin]

"And yet you managed to venture this far from the centre without realising it or hearing it from others? I can't say I'm convinced" grunted the Rex, eyes narrowed on the Troodon. In the trees, a pair of amber eyes watched them suspiciously, their bearer an old acquaintence of the pack, and far more wary than the Tyrannosaur with whom they now conversed...

[dinoman666]

"Do the carnivores all speak of Thrasher all the time?" Nighteye replied. "Because if they have, we have not heard any of this news before. Granted, we try not to strike up conversations with those who might want to kill us. You are an obvious exception, considering the circumstances..."

[Kiryu Gwangi]

Berserker bellowed out in rage as he continued to chase after the Allosaurus, the smaller theropod ducking and weaving around the trees in an effort to lose his enraged pursuer, but the Tyrannosaur relentlessly pressed on, determined solely to kill this smaller hunter.

At one point, the Allosaurus turned around a tree, and Berserker seized him by the tail. The Allosaurus yelped in pain as he was dragged back, the larger theropod pulling him to the ground and stomping on his side, pressing down hard as his talons drew blood. The Allosaurus struggled hard to escape, but his fate was sealed, the point being proven as Berserker bit down on the Allosaurus' arm with all his force, the incredible force snapping the bone like kindling as the Allosaurus howled painfully. Berserker would enjoy venting his rage on this smaller theropod...

[The Kingpin]

"It's not how often they speak of him, but how many of them there are between the island's centre and here" rumbled Crusher lowly. "With how harshly he's changed the island, it'd be impossible for you NOT to hear something. At the very least, the shortage of prey would have tipped you off. And the increasing rarity of them the further out you went should've been further proof. Predators cannibalise eachother out here from how little food there is to go around. It's not unusual for two predators to cross paths and fight over a single kill, disregarding territorial borders" he added as his eyes narrowed. "Avoiding interaction is one thing, but to miss all that...your entire pack, including those not currently beside you, would have to be blind" rattled the Tyrannosaur as his lips curled once more, suspicion and paranoia taking hold as his own statements convinced him...

[dinoman666]

Nighteye had to admit that even he was surprised at the extent that Thrasher had apparently altered the island. "One Spinosaur has caused this much damage?" he hissed, now more curious than anything. He had been speaking at least a half-truth earlier: the Daycrawlers spent much of their time in Death Valley, and forests around it, stealing kills from Bladetooth's cronies or at least hunting different prey. The strategy worked, and the only reason they had ventured so far away from their territory was to track down Thrasher. They hadn't spent a significant amount of time out here as of yet...

[The Kingpin]

"More than you know, Nighteye" growled a voice in a nearby tree, Crusher's gaze shifting momentarily to the source, Ripper visible among the branches, though mostly obscured by the shadows of the canopy. His hide looked rougher than normal, difficult to see though it was, and the Elder seemed oddly dishevelled by his usual standards. Something had happened, though it did not show in his tone, the Raptor maintaining his aura of wisdom and command as he always had. The Elder eyed the Troodon, his expression difficult to read, looking somewhere between disgust and disappointment, as if he knew something about them warranting the reaction, and his tone seemed to imply deeper meaning, hinting to facts beyond the surface. The darkness insured that the full extent of the Raptor's implications remained lost to the Rex. His vision was good by most standards, but even he could not see through the choking darkness well enough to read the Elder's face; a saving grace for the Troodon, and one Ripper seemed well aware of...

[dinoman666]

Nighteye turned his glowing gaze up towards Ripper, eyes narrowing in slight irritation. The raptor had already ruined a previous hunt; he did not appreciate him making an encore appearance. "Is there something you need, Ripper?" the Troodon hissed. "Or do you have everything you need from following us all this distance?"

[The Kingpin]

"I find it interesting how your little 'mission' has gone so far. You really aren't one for luck, are you?" hissed Ripper with a sly smirk, as Crusher's eyes narrowed on the Troodon, the statement immediately demolishing any semblance of belief he may have had in what Nighteye had been saying. "...Mission?" snarled the Tyrannosaur, his voice rattling almost as loud as the thunder roaring overhead, molten orange eyes shimmering around feral yellow rings encircling his pupils, as the two Tyrannosaurs at the Troodon's sides stepped forward, tightening the ring around the small group, bone chilling snarls escaping them both. "Ooops. It seems I've said too much" hissed Ripper, his tone dripping with sadistic glee...

[dinoman666]

Nighteye frowned, displeased. Still, he wasn't about to just go ahead and spill everything. That was a death wish. "Mission, you say?" he hissed. "Do tell. I'm curious about what 'mission' you claim we are on. Because as far as I know, we're simply passing through."

[The Kingpin]

"Oh, come now, Nighteye. You've come to know a bit about me over time, I'm certain of it. You're a lot more knowledgeable than you give yourself credit for, especially where those you perceive as enemies are concerned. You should know that a deal between you and Thrasher wouldn't escape my attention" growled the Raptor with a smirk. Crusher, however, was hardly as amused, lips curling tightly as his fangs glistened in the stormy night. Before he could act on his anger, however, Ripper continued, the Rex holding back his jaws if only out of respect for the Elder "Though please, entertain my curiosity; What made you think making such a deal would result in your benefit? Seems to me you just rushed to the side of the most powerful thing you could find. For what motive, pray-tell? Protection? Doesn't seem quite your style, being the leader of one of the largest Troodon packs on the island, and a proud one at that" hissed the Raptor from the tree, a clawed hand scratching at his neck absently...

[dinoman666]

"If what you're saying is true," Nighteye replied, refusing to fall into the trap of admitting the truth in its entirety, "Then I suppose I would have to say it is because Thrasher has the advantage. I hedge my bets with those who have the advantage. It as simple as that. I am not patriotic to any 'cause,' if that's what you believe." Though Nighteye had also initially believed that Thrasher was a decent leader as well, it appeared that there was more to this situation than met the eye...

[The Kingpin]

"We'll see how much of an advantage he has once the other half of his allies have been torn apart" rumbled Crusher lowly, Ripper simply sighing. "You know dangerously little about the one to whom you've chosen to side with, it seems" hissed the Elder through narrowed eyes. "Thrasher does not share his territory or resources with anyone aside from his own kin. You? You're just a pest that'll eventually outlive his usefulness...and then, he'll just start looking for more reliable ways to get rid of you. Worse, he may even set your own pack against you...offer some of them power in exchange for...thinning the ranks to something more manageable"...

[dinoman666]

Nighteye snorted. "Perhaps you are right," he hissed. "But if Thrasher truly believes he can turn my pack against me, there is much that he doesn't understand about the Daycrawlers. But that would be his own mistake, I suppose." The Troodon lifted his head a little higher, as if trying to look Ripper straight in the eye. "And so, what is your plan, then? Do you wish for me to have a change of heart? Perhaps side with these Rexes out of the goodness of my heart?"

[The Kingpin]

"Telling you the plan would be a fool's move" hissed Ripper bluntly. "Though I can tell you that the island is better off without Thrasher. Unlike Thrasher, Crusher here's tasted the damage such behaviour can inflict on both himself and others were he in such a position. I'm sure by now you know enough to know his father once held the same position of influence that Thrasher now has. And like Thrasher, he made the mistake of being greedy. It cost him his life, and those of most of his kin, and the survivors suffered for it. Crusher, I hope, won't be so ignorant of the risks now that he's tasted the consequences personally. Who better to take Thrasher's place?" explained the Elder as he eyed the Troodon boredly...

[dinoman666]

"So, you truly think a young Rex would be a better, more stable leader than an old and experienced Spinosaurus?" Nighteye asked, slightly curious and slightly derisive. He still did not believe a Rex would make a suitable ruler of the island, and it would take more than the testimony of one raptor to change his mind.

[The Kingpin]

"Tell me, what do you believe Thrasher has experienced?" hissed the Elder, amused. Crusher by now had calmed somewhat, not as eager to tear the Troodon apart so swiftly, intrigued by the path of the conversation, as Morphena and Sarcus stood similarly silent, though still considerably on edge. Unlike Crusher, they were not acquainted with Ripper's habits, and weren't as confident in his ability to detect or predict unseen danger. To them, it was still quite possible that somewhere in the shadows of the storm, a Spinosaur ambush awaited, following their scouts and spies from a distance...