Chapter Text
The air smelled salty, and the sound of birds singing in the trees filled the air. Dawn was breaking, which meant the world was slowly coming alive once more. A new day presented new dangers, new opportunities, and on this particular day, a new addition to the island.
A small motorboat came to shore, and three men in green uniforms jumped out into the water. They kept their movements quick and deliberate; they did not need to draw any unwanted attention. One of the men went onto the shore, he scanned the beach for a moment before motioning to his companions. Silently, they hoisted a metal cage out of the boat and laid it on the wet sand.
“Is it still tranqued?” The first man asked.
“Yes sir.” One replied as he peered through the wired top.
The first man nodded approvingly, “dump her out and let’s get back to the boat.” The other men obliged, opening the cage door and shaking out the body of a small, golden Utahraptor. One bent down to ensure she was breathing, then they trudged back to the boat. The motor roared to life, and the three men left as quickly as they had come.
For several minutes the juvenile raptor lay still at the seaside. Normally, Utahraptors have some sort of skin pattern, like spots, but she was one solid golden hue. It wasn’t until the sun was much higher in the sky did her brown eyes flicker open. Since just calling her ‘the raptor’ would be boring, let’s call her Sunny.
Sunny gathered her feet beneath her and whipped her head around as she poked her nose in the air to take several deep breaths. She couldn’t smell much besides the salty sea, the faint scent of humans, and the dense foliage to her left. Deciding it was safer there, Sunny bolted for the treeline and into the dense underbrush. Where was she going? Sunny didn’t know, just as long as that place had water.
The young raptor plodded along, her eyes constantly scanning the trees for potential danger. She was farther from the beach now, and she could smell the faint scents of other creatures. That reminded her, she was hungry. Sunny snarled, frustrated that she hadn’t stumbled across any prey. Hunting was a new concept to her, where she had been kept before they only had something to chase on occasion. Most of the time, her mother had brought her food. Sunny took in a hopeful sniff but was only greeted with the same smells as before, only except now she smelt water. With a happy growl she jogged faster in its direction.
After a while, she could hear the trickling of fresh water nearby. Happily, Sunny sprinted to the muddy bank and dipped her snout into the water. She gulped down several mouthfuls, feeling very refreshed and more energized. Knowing the ocean lay to her right, the raptor decided to follow the river upstream. Something told her that if she stayed near the river, eventually she would stumble across something to eat.
As she trekked along the bank, Sunny spotted a small waterfall a short distance ahead. It was no bigger than an adult Utahraptor, and Sunny ran over to investigate it. She had never seen water falling before, so she approached it with apprehension at first. Once she realized it was relatively harmless, she ducked underneath it and bounced under the water. This new world had so many things she had never even dreamed of. But, as she splashed in the water, she was once again reminded of her hunger. Sunny hopped back onto the dry land, shook off any excess water, and returned to her journey. The golden raptor wasn’t entirely sure how to find this food but hoped she would stumble across an easy target or perhaps something left out for her.
Hours passed by, and the young raptors stomach was aching. Sunny had heard very distant sounds as she walked, but nothing sounded like it was small enough for her to take down. With a heavy exhale, she decided to rest a moment underneath a leafy bush. The sun was high in the sky, and she was thankful to no longer be on the beach where it was surely extremely hot.
Just as she laid her head down to rest, she heard the sound of something small running closeby. She was on her feet immediately, her large claws flexing in anticipation. Her maw opened slightly when she saw the black and white creature, an Orodromeus, sprinting down the hillside. Sunny crouched down, preparing to sprint after it, but then she heard heavier footfalls. Her eyes widened as a much larger creature chased after it, an Allosaurus. Momentarily, Sunny was frozen in fear as she watched it dispatch the smaller herbivore. Tentatively, she darted toward the larger carnivore, and crouched behind it.
It was a juvenile Allosaurus, with gold skin over his back, arms, and feet, but his midsection was closer to brown. Let's call him, Dusk. He raised his head, seeming that he was aware of Sunny’s presence the whole time, and looked over at her. His amber eyes scanned the curious raptor, noting she was much smaller than he and therefore not a threat. Gently, he nudged the body of the Orodromeus toward Sunny, and let out a short huff.
Sunny cocked her head to the side, giving him an unsure bark. She had never met another predator besides her parents, and she felt wary of this stranger offering her a meal. Dusk took a few steps away from the body and eased onto the ground with a reassuring rumble. At this, the young raptor shot at the dead prey and began tearing away at its flesh. She scarfed down as much as her belly could hold, and Sunny snorted appreciatively at Dusk. The larger dinosaur returned the gesture, seeming to understand some of the communication from the raptor.
Now that she was full, Sunny threw a glance back at the river and started back toward it. Before she left, she barked at Dusk, then trotted away. She had no intent on sticking around if that bigger creature got hungry, and no telling how soon that would be.
Dusk watched the gold raptor leave, curious at how quickly she was leaving. He had never seen another creature outside of his own kind or another herbivore, and this small thing didn’t appear to be either. Considering she had been friendly to him; he did not have to fear her. Having only awoken in the middle of the forest a few hours prior, Dusk was just as new to this world as Sunny. He had always been with his siblings before this, and he would feel safer with some form of companionship.
As Sunny continued along the riverbed, she heard heavy footsteps behind her. Before she could run away, the larger Allosaurus was right behind her and matched her pace. She shied away for a moment and let out a surprised snarl in his direction. He ducked his head with a small friendly snort, trying to appear as harmless as he could. Sunny eyed him uneasily, but after a while she became comfortable with the gold and brown allosaur.
After some time, the two were trotting together, although Sunny had difficulty keeping up sometimes, and feeling rather relieved to have company. While that meal from earlier had sated Sunny’s appetite, the larger dinosaur was not completely satisfied. He kept eyes open for any signs of potential prey, but he had had no such luck. Gingerly, he growled, in the hopes his newfound friend would understand and assist his need for food.
The Utahraptor bobbed her head and cooed, unsure of exactly what Dusk was saying, but she felt certain he meant no ill will. She eyed him for a moment as he licked his teeth, Sunny reasoned he could be hungry. Even if that wasn’t the case, she did need to keep a look out for her next meal. Her sensitive nose didn’t detect much outside the usual, although she could tell something big had been here not too long ago.
Then, a loud call caught both of the predators' attention, and they stopped dead in their tracks. Dusk glanced back at Sunny, as if to ask if she knew the source of the sound. The raptor plodded over to the allosaur, and she ducked underneath him for safety. They listened carefully as footsteps stomped in the trees, and as another loud honk sounded. Just as the pair was preparing to make a run for it, a green four-legged creature, an Avaceratops, stepped into view, and ambled to the riverside. It was larger than Sunny, but smaller than Dusk, and appeared to be of no danger.
The two carnivores studied it from afar, then Sunny poked her head up at Dusk and snarled questioningly. He merely bobbed his head and continued watching the herbivore. This thing looked like he could eat it, and he had help to catch it. The allosaur stepped back and pushed his snout against the side of Sunny and toward the creature with a huff.
She cocked her head and looked back at the Avaceratops, then watched as Dusk crouched and ducked into the underbrush. She trailed behind him, keeping her eye on the lumbering animal standing at the river.
Dusk stood directly behind it at a distance, creeping slowly towards it. Sunny followed his lead and looked to him for guidance. The larger dinosaur waved his head to the right, as if asking her to spread out. She obliged and slinked around a few trees until she could see both Dusk and their prey. The Avaceratops was stooping down and taking in gulps of water, completely oblivious of the two carnivores. Sunny looked from Dusk to the ava, unsure of how they were going to take it down.
After a few more tense moments of them slowly creeping closer, the creature raised its head, let out an alarmed bellow, and galloped across the river. It surely had seen one of them, which was no surprise considering how poor their camouflage was. Not about to allow his dinner to escape, Dusk sprinted after it, splashing through the river and after his prey. Sunny darted after them, leaping over the water in hot pursuit.
The allosaur was mere feet behind the beast, and he snapped hungry jaws at its back. There was no chance that Sunny could catch up to either one of them, so she let out a loud bark and veered off to one side. Dusk heard his companion, and saw her running right, so he went left with an affirming roar.
Their prey, not knowing their plan, foolishly went right in the hopes of escape. But as it ran, Sunny was also running straight for it, and once it got close, she hissed and leapt at it with claws readied. She was upon it, her claws sinking into its neck and back, and she bit down. The Avaceratops shrieked in distress and turned back the other way trying to shake off its attacker. But, to its dismay, Dusk was right behind it, and he sunk his sharp teeth into its small frill. It bellowed in fear and started thrashing around in the desperate hope of escaping.
Sunny raked her claws along its back, the large hook-like claws on her feet stabbed into it drawing blood. Meanwhile, her companion held on with his own claws, and pushed the Avaceratops downward. It did no more than stumble, but it was enough leverage for Dusk to clamp his jaws onto the creature's soft neck. In defeat, the herbivore choked out a honk, and buckled underneath Sunny. It toppled to the ground, and the two carnivores stood silently catching their breath. Blood stained both of their maws; both flicked their gaze to the other momentarily. Dusk let out a triumphant roar, and Sunny followed with several victorious barks.
After so much intensity, Sunny plopped down a little way from the dead Avaceratops and scanned the area. She kept watch as Dusk tore at its flesh, all the while growling happily at their success. The sky was now turning orange, purple, and pink, surely night would come soon.
Dusk, finally full, sat down next to the small raptor with a happy sigh. She snorted playfully, with a gentle snap in his direction. The Allosaurus returned the gesture and shook his head side to side goofily. He fully laid down and rested his head on the soft grass beneath them, clearly exhausted from the day's adventures. Sunny slumped down as well, feeling the events of the day catching up to her. As night began to fall, the pair snoozed peacefully, completely unaware that doing so was dangerous. Neither had lived outside an enclosure before, and the dangers of this new world were completely lost on them.