Isla Sorna Stories: Rebirth

[The Kingpin]

As the Troodon and Dilophosaur disappeared off into the forest, Rake returned to Thrasher's side, accompanying him as he walked towards the territory's borders. "Have you told them?" rumbled the giant, his dark green hide difficult to discern amidst the trees unless one was close, even in spite of his size. "Of course, Thrasher. The fools will never see it coming" hissed Rake with a rasping chuckle. "Good. What news do you have on that irritating Raptor?" growled the Spinosaur. "Not much. He's good. Really good. His reputation is well earned. The most recent thing I could tell you about him is that a pack of Mutants in Death Valley were attacked yesterday. They lost several members, and apparently, the Elder was seen leaving the scene. The only survivor of the group sent to intercept said there were two others that butchered his hunting party, and a scout said a third one joined them soon afterwards. Before the Elder disappeared, he was seen with them" explained Rake in a rattling growl. "I want them found. Hunt them down and kill them. No more interferences. As soon as you find the Elder, have him killed and bring me his body. I want to see what the pest that's been harassing me for the last two years looks like" snarled Thrasher acidly as he upped his pace, Rake simply nodding before splitting up, seeking out his scouts to spread the word. The Raptors had to die...

[C S]

The search for Erebus was not as straightforward as Aircrest made it out to be, but by now the green raptor had come to expect meandering plans and twists. He was just glad that the obstacles he and the others faced were not crippling ones, only inconveniences. For one, the sky had begun to darken as the day progressed, the skies covered by clouds rolling in over the high hills and mountains across the flatlands. Wind picked up, scattering already fleeting scents on the game trail, which had since lost most of its grazing traffic to other pastures, herded away by Thrasher's forces. Which was why the rogue trike most likely remained; uncontested feeding with nothing to fear... and the ability to utterly annihilate anything fool enough to provoke it.

Staring out at the grassland from the very edge of the treeline many meters away, Aircrest could only think: "And we're the merry band of fools..." He shifted about in the jagged shade of the trees, the leaves rustling in a coming gale...

[The Kingpin]

Several hours of travel had brought the Troodon and the Dilophosaur to the edge of Crusher's new borders; a thick, deep river running alongside them and writhing into the territory, taking with it the livelihood of the small game trail caught between the three Tyrannosaur territories beyond. It brought water to the thirsty herds living within the borders, and fed countless streams that formed a web of life in the encompassing forests. The territory was well marked, and it wasn't difficult to guess by the dead mutant triceratops laying before them that the current inhabitant had no tolerance for intruders and threats, regardless of their dietary preference...



Elsewhere, in the middle of a deserted plain not far from Thrasher's territory, a lone, dark grey triceratops could be seen standing in the shadow of a lone tree, tall and sturdy, much like the beast that fed in its shadow. Fruits could be seen clustering the ground, large orange orbs resembling mangoes, speckled with blackish green spots in some places. Steely silver eyes seemed to glare hatefully at everything around it, even when nothing could be seen but grass and plants. Hellfire couldn't tell if it was just the shape of the ridges leading to the brow horns that gave it its angry look, or if it was a genuine expression on the beast's face. It looked older than it probably was, and was battlescarred in ways he had never seen on any other creature. It was a frightening sight, seeing what looked to be Tyrannosaur bite-marks skidding worthlessly across the herbivore's somewhat crocodilian hide, and claw marks framing its head from would-be attackers. Even the beak seemed to be scarred, a very shallow scrape carved into the polished black and brown hooked beak of what was arguably the single most dangerous beast the island had ever seen. Rumours were rife of the beast's almost legendary rampages, and the destruction it left in its wake. Few that dared attack it survived to tell the tail, and those that did, never dared to go near a Triceratops again, fearing that by some freak stroke of poor luck, they would end up drawing the monster's wrath down upon them. Even though it lacked the grotesque mutations of the one he had seen earlier, he had no doubt this one, this triceratops, was by far the deadlier of the two...

[C S]

"So... Fatalis..." Aircrest growled, giving the raptor a sidelong look that conveyed his growing concern. This wasn't the Trike he remembered from eight years ago. Time had not been kind to it, and likewise it was not kind to anything. "... You're certain that you can pull through with this? Without dying horribly...?"

[Hopeflower]

Xanthe raised his head from the small stream and stretched his jaws in an exhausted yawn. It had taken them this long to find the source of the scent he'd caught, and he could already see the strain the journey was putting on his children. Alira and Cirrus were curled up in the shelter of their mother's flank, staring into the foliage ahead with exhausted expressions, too tired to even complain of hunger. The stray compies the pair had snatched up on the way were nowhere near filling, especially for Alira, who had shared with Blade when she felt like she'd had enough to keep going. Savarna wasn't much better off, but she kept sniffing the breeze hopefully, waiting to catch the scent of bigger prey.

[The Kingpin]

"Positive...maybe.....I hope" hissed Fatalis lowly as he saw the battlescarred herbivore in the distance. Polished black tips adorned the herbivore's horns, grooves running along their length acting like natural fullers to drain the blood of those unfortunate enough to get struck by the beast. Muscles rippled across its form that seemed uncharacteristically large. Fatalis, in spite of his speed and agility, caught himself actually wondering if he could consistently outrun this beast. "Hey, only live once, right?" hissed the Raptor with a smirk, before bolting sideways into the trees to his side, knowing the trike would probably charge him as soon as he got too close. He didn't want to give away his comrades' positions....someone needed to take over from him later...

[C S]

Aircrest grunted and nodded to Fatalis as he broke off. Despite what his impression of the raptor was, he had to respect him for taking the risk. "I just hope I haven't sent him off to die a hero..." he thought, getting a rising feeling of uneasiness as a result. Now he was starting to think that he should have been the one out there, running on the leading edge of fate as he always had. He shook his head and hissed, scolding himself. "He's had the most experience with things like this. He stands a better chance than you."

"Lets get into position, Hellfire," he growled to the Deinonychus, proceeding to jog along the outskirts of the jungle, keeping himself low and taking care as to where he put his feet down...

[Giratina93]

Twincrest stopped as she saw the dead Triceratops. They were getting close to the area, and if the dead trike was any indication, they had to be careful from here on out. The massive bitemarks that littered the corpse identified the attacker as a Tyrannosaurus, and most likely, the one she had been spying on... If these Troodonts were as good as they bragged, then no doubt them taking over the spying would work better than she did... if not... then how unfortunate for them. "We are nearing our destination. Prepare yourselves..." Twincrest warned the Troodont pack...

[dinoman666]

Nighteye gave a simple nod as a response, scanning his surroundings silently. "I assume this is the cause of the one we are looking for?" The Troodon inquired as he examined the gruesome scene. Tyrannosaurs never were very clean killers. He made a mildly disgusted sniff as he looked the dead Triceratops over, and his pack merely watched silently, still as statues at the moment...

[The Kingpin]

At that moment, the river seemed to explode beside them, a massive set of crocodilian-like jaws emerging and slamming shut around the Dilophosaur, dragging her into the water with a violent thrash, the sarcosuchus attempting to drag her deep enough to initiate a death roll, giving her mere seconds to escape. "Yes. This is the border of the Tyrannosaur's territory to our knowledge. Your duty is simple; gather anything you can on his activities and associates" hissed a raspy voice amidst the trees as Rake emerged from the treeline. He was certain the Troodon knew he was following them. It mattered little, so long as they knew they were not entirely unsupervised...


Hellfire simply nodded as he pressed on through the undergrowth, moving to a position that would allow them to lure the herbivore towards the borders of Thrasher's territory and that of his allies. Aircrest's concerns were not his alone. He knew full well the Triceratops was a terrifying creature, its ferocity unmatched even by predators, and its relentlessness comparable to some of the most persistent Rexes. The fact this one was a known charger, noted even among other roamers as a creature that ran down its targets at unnaturally high speeds for their species, was another matter of concern. Still, there were no other options...


Fatalis steadily and carefully closed the distance between himself and the herbivore, remaining low to the ground and hidden mostly by grass. The Triceratops was busy eating fruit at the base of the tree, pressing its head against the trunk and pushing on occasion, shaking the tree until more fruit fell from its branches, before resuming its feeding. Fatalis dared not attempt to attack yet. He needed to give his comrades time to get into position...Already however, he was busy planning contingencies for if the Trike proved to be too much of a challenge for him to escape easily. A mental map of the area was being thoroughly webbed with escape routes, over roots, under and between trees, over streams and into thick grasses, all creating a plan to make pursuit impossible for the Trike...

[C S]

Aircrest's jogging turned into cautious hops when he came across spots in the treeline where cover was thin. No less than ten feet away from him, the battle scarred Trike was, its back towards him. As far as the raptor was concerned, the fruits which it ate was all that kept it distracted for the time being. That is, until Fatalis kicked off this whole dance with death...

[Giratina93]

Twincrest howled in surprise and pain as she lashed out in an attempt to survive, her claws slashing against the Sarcosuchus's face, trying her best to attack the eyes and throat from her position. She had been careless and too close to the water's edge... and now she was going to have to fight her way out of this. She wasn't going to let this overgrown croc kill her...No, she wanted to live!

[dinoman666]

The Troodons scattered at the emergence of the Sarcosuchus, but it wasn't a panicked response. It was instinct, and quite organized for a surprise attack. The group of small predators moved quickly away from the river to gathered closer to the trees, heads bobbing up and down at random intervals as they chittered quietly to each other. Nighteye broke off from the rest to look at Rake. "Sounds simple enough," he hissed. "But what of the Dilophosaur? She was a useful guide, at the very least." He wasn't necessarily surprised that Thrasher had apparently sent a Sarcosuchus to execute Twincrest, but the Troodon still considered it a waste...

[The Kingpin]

"She was clumsy and got herself killed. I don't intend to try and save her. Do you?" hissed Rake simply in his typical bitter-sounding rasping tone. He seemed indifferent to the event, though not entirely unsurprised. The situation was a bit too convenient. It looked as if she had been intentionally executed, when in fact, it was a freak accident that just so happened to coincide with Rake's interests. Still, there was no need for the others to know that...

A rumbling snarl escaped the sarcosuchus as a stray talon slashed across its eye, the beast closing it's eye just in time, but the talon's cut nevertheless inflicting a shallow injury more painful than it was dangerous, the beast tossing its head aside as it let go of the Dilophosaur, blood trailing into the water from wounds around her torso and along what seemed to be a horribly mangled arm; a sign that she was not going to leave this incident unscathed. Already, numerous smaller crocodiles, close in size to saltwater crocodiles, were moving in for their chance...and unlike the larger Sarcosuchus, they didn't need too much space in order to drag the Dilophosaur into a deadly death roll...



All it took was one snapped twig. A single intentional mis-step by Fatalis was all that was required to rouse the herbivore from it's daze, the Black Horned Triceratops lifting its head from its food and turning around, tilting its head to one side and eyeing the location the snap had come from with a single scar-wrapped eye. "Ooops?" hissed Fatalis with an uncomfortable smirk, both pleased and terrified he had the herbivore's attention. His entire body seemed to tremble with barely contained excitement, adrenaline rushing through his veins to the point time seemed to stand still for a few brief moments; this would be, by far, the most dangerous and exhilarating chase he had ever pulled off thus far. The stakes were higher, the enemy more dangerous, and the rewards greater than anything he had ever achieved before....he just hoped he could survive it. As the herbivore turned to glare at him through narrowed icy silver eyes, twin jets of vapour escaping the ceratopsian's flared nostrils, the head tilting downwards, horns pointing forwards and frill rising upwards, it was clear that his chances were far from favourable; a fact that only announced itself even further as the very earth beneath him began to tremble with the herbivore's rapidly accelerating charge...

[C S]

And just like that, Aircrest was tearing after the rampaging Trike, keeping pace with the ensuing chaos while keeping far enough away to not cause the behemoth to change targets. His heart was pounding, chest heaving. Every time he touched ground with one foot, he threw himself back into the air. He might as well have been gliding across the plains in a breakneck, beeline for Thrasher's borders...

[dinoman666]

"I never said I was," Nighteye hissed back, turning to face Rake once more. "I'm assuming that you have been following us either to keep an eye on us or assist us. I am guessing the former..." Rake would make a much better guide than Twincrest, most likely, but he didn't seem the type...

[The Kingpin]

Fatalis let loose an ear-shredding screech as he turned and bolted, his surroundings a blur as he tore across the plains in retreat, the ground's horrible shaking growing no weaker, the tell-tale sign that the trike, as expected, was ludicrously fast for its size, covering several feet in single strides as the horned behemoth ran him down, a deep, resonating bellow escaping its jaws as puffs of vapour spilled from its nostrils like some monstrous organic freight train. Hellfire was in hot pursuit, keeping close to Aircrest as they shot across the gap separating them from Thrasher's territory, though their charge would soon be cut off by the territory of another predator; a Saurophaganax that had been placed on Thrasher's borders as added protection from invading predators...it was in for the shock of its short, violent, miserable life...


"Both, for now. Once we begin getting too close, however, I will leave the work to you...Spectre's family are especially sensitive to our kind, for obvious reasons...detecting me would put the entire plan at risk of failure" hissed Rake calmly, raising a brow as the Sarcosuchus broke off the attack, jaws voided of any part of the Dilophosaur...seems she had some fight afterall...not that it mattered...

[dinoman666]

Nighteye nodded. "Very well. Who is this 'Spectre?' A Rex?" A plan was already forming in his mind: there were two ways to go about this spying business. Either they could simply stay out of sight and watch, probably for several days, or they could try a riskier, but simpler method. Offering to 'help' the Rexes through various means. A few white lies here and there, and a little smooth-talking, and Nighteye could be their best friend in less than a week...

[C S]

How could things seem so slow and yet so unbelievably fast at the same time? It was not the Trike that was in question here, but time itself as perceived by Aircrest. Adrenaline coursed through his body, each second that passed was scrutinized by heightened senses and thought processes. Yet all the same, time was rushing past him, blurring into a muddled surrealism as several parts of his being contended with one another.

"I am chasing something that tried to kill me years ago."

And still he remained, following at breakneck speed out of touch with time itself. When the rain began as a drizzle, it got little more than the tiniest acknowledgement from him. When he saw the gentle dip of the land ahead leading into a small stream and a patch of trees, Aircrest knew the first part of the plan had been a success: they reached the outlying portion of the Spinosaur's territory. Now it was a matter of transferring the Triceratops' aggression to Thrasher's allies...

[Giratina93]

Twincrest made a break for the bank, swimming as quickly to the nearest portion of it as she could. Her eyes were on wide alert, scanning through the murky waters as best she could to stay away from any crocs that were approaching. She scrambled back up onto land, getting away from the water as her injuries bled out, the Dilophosaurus panting as she moved away...