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Many an hour had passed since Moira left the Utility Base for supplies. The stretch of time had played on her mind as the sun retreated into the West. Never good news inside the labyrinth of brush and thicket known as the Forest Chasm, which had only been about six miles away from the Utility Base – or so was dictated on the map which the mercenary team was provided.
The area was strewn with grand prehistoric fauna, often suffocating any unlucky soul who dared to explore its growth without a machete equipped. Even through the large and dense forest there remained a carved path, most likely formed by the rough tires of the military or supply vehicles over a long period of time.
Following the beaten and dusted path Moira would find a bridge made of a variety of metals. Moira wasn't educated on the subject, and so she could not make out any specifics. The most she could tell was that it was sturdy in structure and smooth in texture as her boots clanked across its flooring.
It took about two minutes for her to finish walking the bridge between the large chasm beneath. The only reason it took longer than usual was due to the incredible scenery that lay before her.
At sundown, none would think a waterfall could look so elegant, and yet there it was. The purple tint of the sky shone across the rapids, flowing out of the tall mountain. White specks of water were still visible, sparkling vibrantly even as darkness spread across the island.
Moira stood there a few moments marveling at the sight, with her feeling that its only purpose was to remind humankind how truly small and insignificant it is compared to the vast expanse of nature. Eventually though she had ought to get a move on and find shelter -- for the sky only turned darker, and the Brit did not find herself very keen on becoming some creature's feast that evening.
Her stride turned into a brisk one as she crossed the bridge and found herself once again on a rocky path this time around. Similar to the dusted path she trekked earlier. After walking for a while she met a fork in the road, each indistinguishable from the other, aside from a giant fallen tree split into two thick trunks blocking the path to the left.
She determined it would be wiser to choose the left route having considered it was the obvious landmark. Her mind began processing like whom she revered as her survivalism mentor during her time on the island – Joseph Crane. Following the survivalist train of thought, she deduced that if she were to retrace her footsteps she could easily recognize the aged tree which stuck out like a sore thumb among the fresh vegetation.
Not dwelling too long on the thought, she ventured onward, and the metal bridge only further disappeared into the far horizon.
She made an effort to climb the large piece of lumber in front of her -- swinging one leg over a sturdy branch and using that hooked appendage to then hoist herself up and to the next twig or branch. Rigorous attempts of grasping at branches, occasionally losing her grip but mostly succeeded. It depleted much of the energy inside her. Death was quite possible in this predicament seeing as she was about fifty feet in the air and her supplies and rifle were only becoming heavier by the second.
Her face was sweating profusely and her heart raced, but thankfully with one last heave of breath she reached the end of the nearly twenty minute task.
She sat at the top for a moment with her legs dangling off the top trunk. It took a second before she could catch her breath after the rather exhausting and fearful climb. At the top of the ancient bark, she could survey almost the entire forest, and took note of a few landmarks to keep in mind for later to lead her back to the Utility Base.
An hour or so passed, although at this point Moira could no longer read the time efficiently as her mind became fogged with exhaustion and fear.
She crossed her legs and observed the black of night completely erode the island. It was much too risky for Moira to go out adventuring, as at this time the carnivorous dromaeosaurs usually occupied the sullen forest in search of prey.
Once again summoning her inner Joseph Crane, she attempted to settle her tired body on the hardened wood beneath her as she felt the need for sleep overcoming her. It was definitely uncomfortable, the tree being unable to provide ample support for her spine, unlike her old Cambridge dorm.
Hopelessly attempting to avoid pondering the pain she was experiencing with her skull pushed up against the wood, she turned to her side in hopes of finding solace in the position, yet she quickly found that the pressure on her shoulder was unbearable. Therefore, she lay on her back after all.
Moira gazed up at the stars, concealed with thick leaves but still visible. She relaxed, and her mind wandered to her past Cambridge days before she eventually lost herself to slumber.
It wasn't but a few hours into the night until she felt something hot on her face, and it seemed to come in short bursts of heat, accompanied by a low bellowing noise. Moira didn't waste time thinking after she heard a clicking noise ring out, twice, by her side.
Soon the bellowing noise turned to a snarl, and whatever was leering over her snuffed its nostrils eagerly.
Before even opening her eyes, she knew precisely what the creature was. A Novaraptor, genetically engineered by Phoenix Corp., to use for war. Of course, this plan failed rather explosively when a careless employee made an error – just happening to release every single specimen and in turn sacrificing the island to the prehistoric clones. That situation was what led Moira and the rest of the mercenaries in tow to the island, the team intending to take the island back from the savage animals.
Moira's thoughts snapped back to the current situation at hand, eyes wide open and a belligerent expression plastered on her face. She quickly grasped onto her rifle next to her, then immediately swung with as much force as she could using the stock. She intended for it to fall to its death, but unfortunately the fierce nova-dromaeosaur caught itself on its heels a few feet away and hissed, subsequently showing off its bloodied yellow teeth.
Its intimidating toe claw tapped once more on the bark it stood on as it adjusted its position.
Moira stared into the beast's beady, yellow, reptilian eyes whilst she quickly got hold of her rifle and made sure it was loaded, never once breaking eye contact with the fearsome raptor.
The creature started towards her with utmost speed, containing a determination to secure a sustainable meal unmatched by any normal animal. Moira held her rifle, pointed straight at the desperate monster, waiting for it to get close enough to shoot its head off.
It cocked its thin snout, as if to prepare a pounce. A gunshot rang out, yet the raptor remained standing on its feet as the shot missed. Moira shook, and with a terror she hadn't known since she inhabited the secluded island. She jumped to her feet with a thud, and then a running start, stomping down the split tree. As she realized she was cornered, she aimlessly jumped off the tree, hoping and praying there would be a branch she could cling to.
Her hands rigorously reached and grasped at every single branch, but not always succeeding. Her shaken and sweaty hands prevented her from keeping a firm grip on the branches, causing her heart to pump with the force of a jet engine as she fell below to the jungle floor, accompanied by a scream.
A hard thud sounded out as she hit a pile of leaves, miraculously failing to injure herself atrociously. She managed to fall about fifteen feet from the branch and, very luckily for her, there happened to be a large pile of growth that she could land on.
But she knew she was not safe yet as she heard the raptor chirping, most definitely to call for assistance. Her rifle landed only a few feet behind but the shock froze her, rendering her unable to move.
She looked at the predator hopping from cliff to cliff, until it landed in front of her with a loud thud, meanwhile she was feeling utterly hopeless. She knew that upon getting in that helicopter all those months ago she was surrendering herself to the elements, and most importantly to the far superior dinosaur species that she had studied so much about in Cambridge. She knew more than anyone else this was destined to happen.
The grey scaled raptor growled, approaching Moira's frame backed up against another tree, close to where she fell. She could see glistening saliva dripping from its maw, which was chattering in anticipation.
A dominating hiss escaped its jaws after it lifted up its toe claw and drove it straight into Moira's leg, followed by a blood curdling scream and a flash of pain.
The beast leaned forward, opening its mouth to rip her throat -- but suddenly stopped as it heard a distant, disturbing bellow. Moira immediately recognized this as the roar of the Tyrannosaurus Rex that had been hiding out from the mercenaries after near death. She knew this because they had killed the rest of the rexes not but a few months ago.
Upon characterizing the sound the raptor withdrew its claw out of Moira's thigh flesh, further tearing it as it welled up with blood.
Then the monster quickly sped off into the jungle, likely not to come back for a while.
Moira didn't know how to feel, as agonizing pain and motivation to survive bubbled inside of her. She tried to focus on the latter.
She felt the warm blood pour out from her deep gash which made a puddle on the ground.
She bit her lip, and stifled a cry of pain. Survival instincts kicked in once more as she quickly ripped a large leaf off of a bush a few inches away, then wrapped it tightly around her injured thigh. Afterwards, she removed her belt, and circled it around the top of the wound, then pulled it until her circulation cut off.
No longer able to hold in her suffering, she screamed out in indescribably torturous pain, and shortly afterward rain befell the island.
The water trickling down her body was somewhat comforting, as it reminded her of the first time she stepped onto the island's soil.
She tried her hardest to fight her fading consciousness, but between the calming rain and the extreme stress it was all for naught.
The next morning came about ten hours later, when Moira came to. Her pain had somewhat subsided since the previous night, but not nearly enough to be able to move.
In the meantime the forest sang a song she was familiar with; birds chirping and a multitude of dinosaurs chiming.
Moira felt around the dirt, which turned to mud from last night's events. She was searching for her rifle, thinking she could use it as a cane to make her way back to the Utility Base somehow. Though now she supposed she couldn't use the previous route, considering her condition.
She eventually grasped the rifle, and once it was in her hands, switched on the safety and used it as leverage to hoist herself up. She frowned, feeling the deep burning pain all throughout her body once she slightly shifted. She bit her lip until it bled to bear the pain as she put all her weight on her uninjured leg, with one arm leaning on the long gun for support.
She slowly hobbled away from the tree, making her way around to observe if there was an alternative path back to the Utility Base near her initial route, and there appeared to be none. She only had the daylight to make her way back, but it appeared she would be stuck here a while.
She couldn't use her other arm to hold a machete; much less shoot her rifle. She instead lumbered into the forest in search of a safe resting place, figuring she would be here a while.
The further and deeper she explored, the less light was found illuminating the forest, and she thought of this as a good thing. Near that dark thicket she saw a small cave – about the size for most small dinosaurs to enter, and possibly a human too. After studying it a while, and going over it with the same survivalist train of thought; Moira kneeled down and slid her rifle into the cave opening, and heard a clack as the rifle hit what sounded to be the cave's wall.
She flopped down flat on her stomach, and resisted the urge to cry and scream from the unbearable pain as she wriggled into the small cave opening. On her way in she struggled; her body felt like it was being torn apart as she moved her limbs forward and back. Her wounded leg was being dragged against the side of the opening, and that caused her to grit her teeth. It left behind a streak of blood as the leaf tore in two, undoing her makeshift wrapping and causing a minor amount of blood to drip onto the forest floor.
Nonetheless she slipped through the opening and afterward found herself sitting up in a surprisingly spacious cave. She could see her rifle pressed up against the wall right next to her and a path into a bigger section of the cave. Moira's survival instincts told her this would be a good place to hang around a while.
With such a small opening and a spacious inside it may as well be her own camp. She was safe from most everything here. Raptors and spitters couldn't possibly fit, and Compsognathus could be killed easily. A larger carnivore such as Tyrannosaurus wouldn't ever figure to check here. Even if one did, it wouldn't find anything. After all, it would require a small and flexible form to manage to get inside.
Moira feels herself getting exhausted – most likely from the excruciating pain. It was already evening again. There wouldn't be much time left, and she really needed to replace the leaf now, or else she would be as good as dead. She didn't figure to bring her medical supplies back when she left the Utility Base, despite all of Joseph and Marcus's warnings.
Out of all the mercenaries those two were probably the most responsible, she thought.
As she sat in the cold and slightly damp cave next to her cane rifle, she remembered she couldn't count on anyone but herself. Even in this situation – where help would be extremely useful, she denies herself the luxury.
Moira looked down at her injured leg, seeing the thick leaf that had split in two at some point during her crawling through the cave. She attempted to wrap it around her leg again, folding the two halves into one using what little light she had from the opening as leverage, but the seemingly sturdy leaf tore in half as she was about to wrap it.
Now the odds weren't quite in her favor, and much to her displeasure the wound began hurting like it did before. She knows she has no choice but to find more wrapping at this point. She knows how serious her injury has gotten.
The only issue now was how she would manage to acquire medical grade wrapping. She figured she might be able to find more leaves, but it would be too risky. Animals would be attracted to her blood. She sat in thought, panicked, and the pain still steadily increased.
Moira's thoughts were quickly overrun with guilt, and she ached as she remembered the mercenaries careful reminder to her; starting with Marcus lightly suggesting she bring some sort of first aid, and ending with Joseph interjecting and reinforcing that "You should always bring first aid, especially when there's danger around every corner."
–
Despite their insistence, she refused, instead giving Jackson Stone, who is a criminal with unreasonable amounts of narcissism – a knowing glare, before flicking her eyes down to his injured hand. A Cryolophosaurus had bitten him, and pretty hard at that. He was lucky that a juvenile Cryo didn't have the bite force to break bone; only create deep cuts in the skin.
She remembered seeing him earlier that day tending to his wound which still hadn't healed. It was hardly wrapped in bandages properly. She could tell he was neglecting the wound, most likely due to his belief that he could take anything; even a bite from a dinosaur. She always hated that about him. His insistence that he's so impressive, and the scantily clad woman on his net gun. She'd scolded him plenty about that.
A silent pause ensued between the mercenaries until Moira swiftly broke it. "Mr. Stone here needs it more than me," she gestured to the man sitting and polishing his colts, then continued. "I'll be fine. I'll only be out an hour or two, and it won't take me long to get back."
Joseph's face remained unchanged. "Hart. We may have limited supplies, but that's not enough reason to put yourself in danger. Stone will recover. You might not out there."
Marcus shyly agreed with a nod and an assured look at Joseph as he was speaking. After all he wasn't one to talk much.
"Even despite that, all of you know I can survive out there. We've done it before." Moira responded, with a hint of anger in her voice. Jackson suddenly spoke up, unexpected by everyone there. "Guys, Moira.. just.. let her go. She's just fine killing those things. She'll come back."
Joseph looked disappointed in the man's statement. He sighed and looked down, untrusting of the wilds and how Moira would fare. They wouldn't allow her to leave, especially not until the Pyromaniac had a say. He was away doing.. well, whatever he tended to do. He'd disappear for hours at a time, his whereabouts unknown until he came back with blood all over his clothes.
Since Moira wouldn't be allowed to leave, she would wait until the break of dawn – when everyone else was asleep. Quickly and quietly she grabbed all of what she needed. Excluding the med kit, of course. She wouldn't need that.
–
Her thoughts and recollection of events were halted when she heard a snarl right next to the tight opening of the cave. Whatever was outside would've been hard-pressed to get in, so she wasn't worried about that – but she did consider the fact that as long as this thing is outside the entrance she couldn't rummage for supplies or tools. Moira quickly became worried, and unable to summon any sort of positive outlook. It definitely seemed she was going to die now, but she bit her lips again. The extra physical pain distracted her from the thought that it was unlikely she would live through this.
She came to her senses, and slowly grabbed her large pseudo-cane rifle. Moira stared at her red hand as it smeared her blood across the trigger, and then aimed it square at the opening. She was completely sure it would fit through – and it never hurt to use her sniper rifle for more than just sniping – she'd done it many times before, to varying degrees of success. But here and now, her target's muzzle was placed right in front of the opening, spreading its breath as it sniffed and snarled.
From the small amount of skull shape she could see she determined it was a Novaraptor – but this variation of the genetic monstrosity she had never seen before. It was crimson red; though she didn't know if it really was red or if it was just the increasing lack of light playing tricks on her sight.
Nonetheless she prepared to ram the rifle with both hands as she lay flat, nearly filling out all of the thin space inside the cave's entrance.
Her hands trembled as she aimed.
With one fell swoop she violently swung the stock of the rifle through the opening and straight into the front of the Novaraptor's jaws, which earned a loud thud accompanied by a crack and a screech of pain. The ground thumped, and signified the creature had tumbled backward and hit the ground.
She heard a click close to the barrel of her rifle and looked down, thereby discovering a rather bloody tooth laying in front of her.
Shortly after, she listened for signs of movement. She had to be sure that it was gone; at least for now. She concentrated deeply on her hearing for a few moments, knowing that Novaraptors could be unusually stealthy at times. To her surprise, a faint tip-tapping from the Novaraptor's feet scurrying away could be heard, gradually becoming quieter as its distance from the cave's opening increased.
Moira figured it'd be a good idea to scan around the entrance for any other items, but found none. She curiously picked up the tooth and inspected it thoroughly. It had a curved shape – best for trapping prey inside the animal's maw; which is exactly what she studied back at Cambridge. No matter how much she reminded herself that these monsters weren't truly "dinosaurs" she still saw a living creature inside them, even just a little bit.
She always felt some sympathy for them despite the frequent exterminations that she and the team would take part in. The cries of agony they would let out just before the final blow dealt by Joseph's hefty shotgun always managed to make her frown. Seeing the explosion of brain matter and blood scatter across the floor had changed her. Back then, she wished she would have killed them faster, and more mercifully with her pistol instead of seeing their heads explode.
Especially as a woman who spent years studying biology, she understood animals. What she saw during her time on the island so far only further reflected in her mind that they were animals, even knowing that they are not natural. She only started using her rifle fairly recently against them. She felt apprehensive about it, but managed to swallow it and aim whenever she needed to.
She pushed away her thoughts of the past, knowing there were more important matters at hand here.
Her mind now flicked back to her injury, still exposed after the leaf tore. She sat up and looked at her shorts. It was made of a sturdy fabric, a worthwhile material for living on an island filled with unnatural beasts and little shelter. As she observed her clothing, she reached the conclusion that she might be able to use the cloth to once again wrap her wound.
She wouldn't find any suitable and sterile wrapping until she made it back to the Utility Base, so she figured that it would be an okay idea for now. She hoped the group would still be there when she got back. She looked at the bloody tooth she was holding between her fingers, and suddenly something clicked.
After a bit of deliberation, Moira made a plan. She'd use the tooth to cut a section of her shorts off, and tie it back around her leg. If only she had brought the medkit she'd be using it right now.
She shifted into place steadily against the cave's wall, readying to cut her shorts. She noticed that even sitting up was still incredibly painful.
She sighed and positioned her left hand near her injured leg, feeling a little nervous about the ordeal. She swallowed her doubts, trying harder and harder to focus.
Finally, and with a strained expression, Moira pulled her shorts away from her thigh, and her other hand quickly swiped the raptor's tooth across her beige shorts right side. A loud ripping sound was heard, the result of the fang not going through smoothly.
The object kept getting stuck in the threads and seams, but she discovered a quick tug solved that. She was careful not to accidentally cut herself as she was working around the whole pant leg over and under; she would certainly get infected if this yellowed and dirty tooth were to draw blood or make contact with the wound.
She pulled her leg out of the circular piece of fabric she had managed to cut. It was… quite pathetic looking, especially for all the work she did to remove it, she thought to herself.
There were tatters and rips everywhere despite the circle itself being fairly sized and thick. It was connected all the way around, and so she made a quick incision at the bottom of the tattered fabric to separate it into one long piece.
She mentally prepared herself for more physical activity, and preemptively bit her bottom lip as hard as she could. She found that it was a coping mechanism for her during all of the pain. She stood up slowly, and held back another whimper. At least this time she didn't focus on the pain as much due to her bleeding lip. It would probably be scarred when she got back. She didn't know when that would be.
Through all of her stumbling, and shaking, she finally managed to find her balance inside the cave. She had gripped right onto the dark walls beside her, which provided some stability.
She thought she should keep the tooth for later so she clumsily deposited the bloody tooth in her shorts pocket while leaning onto the wall. With haste she clasped the pockets' button shut afterward. She had planned to wrap her wound, but she was far too weak right now, and unable to stand up. Her legs began quivering, a result of the soreness and the injuries over time. With a deep exhale, she slid down the wall onto her knees with both her fists closed, one of them tightly clutching the fabric. She felt so hopeless and vulnerable.
After what felt like an eternity of silence, Moira suddenly felt tears pouring down her face. She supposed all the stress and physical trauma had just caught up to her now, when she thought she was "safe."
She hadn't cried in ages. The tears just kept coming in waves, sometimes making their way into her mouth. They tasted salty and unpleasant. Her eyes slammed shut, and her nose wrinkled while she held in sobs and wheezes. She felt some of the wetness cling to her blonde hair and onto her neck. All the sweat from her exertion today and her tears of sorrow mixed into one coagulation of misery.
She desperately clawed and banged at the wall as her salty tears dripped down her lips and onto the floor of the cave; this was the most frustration, anger, and sadness that she'd felt in years. The stinging and burning on her lips got worse as the tears continued, and her stoicism and insistence that she couldn't be beaten suddenly melted away.
It felt like it was hours before the tears slowed. She finally had the courage to turn her head, although slowly. She noticed that the light was nearly gone, and her visibility along with it. The image of her hand in front of her turned blurry as it became enveloped in darkness.
The only light she could see now was her tears slightly highlighted from the remaining light. That was until the sun finally retreated and everything was black inside the cave. She had no choice but to sit down next to her rifle, with her lip still bleeding and stinging with tears.
She guessed the pain and suffering was enough to fall asleep, but it was still difficult to shut her brain off and not worry about every single tap or growl she heard. Slowly, she relaxed, the sounds of crickets and exotic animals soothing her.
–
As she drifted off, she saw the dark forest. Then she saw the giant tree split into two. It led into a nightmare reliving the grey scaled Novaraptor leaving a hole in her thigh again. Except this time, it didn't leave. It chased after her as she tried to crawl away. It was like it was playing with its food, cruelly teasing her with the illusion of an escape.
Then the raptor was on top of her back, foot placed neatly on her shoulder, and its horrid snout looked down straight at her head. It snuffed, the familiar hot breath sending a chill down her spine. Soon it was growling, and then she could feel the saliva dripping down onto her exposed neck –
With a jolt she felt its hungering jaws clamp down on her neck, and everything stopped and turned to white.
–
She opened her eyes, and was greeted by the humid smell of the island and the warm orange light flowing in from the small opening of the cave. She survived another day, and her pain seemed to have lessened again. That was until she got too confident and tried to move, causing her to yelp in pain. It was a completely uncontrollable vocalization, frustrating her. "Shit," she exclaimed.
As she further awakened, she felt the soft but sturdy fabric in her hand, and remembered she needed to tie it around her wound. Some small amounts of blood had collected around her shorts overnight, which felt a little cold. She began wrapping with haste, making sure to avoid letting the contaminated areas of cloth touch the wound.
Though she knew it was probably infected by now. It took about a minute to complete, but once it was done she tied the loose ends into a tight knot at the front of her thigh. She huffed. She was glad she was no longer crushing her lips with her teeth anymore at least.
The new wrapping felt sort of nice. She certainly felt less exposed, and it provided some warmth. A bit of her shorts were still missing, though – which made her feel more exposed; but she figured you win some you lose some.
Suddenly, she heard the familiar thudding of feet treading through the jungle. It must've been the crimson Novaraptor returning. She held a hand over her mouth to suppress her breath.
She figured it might live around here, but it wouldn't live much longer. She wouldn't let it.
She silenced all of the agony and burning throughout her body as she began to shift, and then laid flat in front of the cave's opening. She grabbed her rifle beside her. It was still loaded with ammunition. She flicked the safety off, and aimed down sights through the small opening.
She patiently waited, and waited. Then waited some more. Yet nothing. Her eyes were transfixed on the scope, focused so intently that everything else practically went numb. All she could see was the vibrant greens of the foliage outside, and occasionally native flowers swaying with the wind.
Her arm started to cramp from holding the rifle so long. It had become boring waiting for the Novaraptor to show up, if she was honest. Her thoughts sometimes wandered back to her time in Cambridge, but every time it came up she would push it away. She was determined to focus only on this task.
She felt her muscles stiff up in fearful anticipation, but almost like a soldier she froze and mechanically kept her good aim. Her eyes darted around the growths and the forest, switching between either of them to eventually detect the Novaraptor.
It could be heard moving around, but it didn't dare step in front of the cave – that was, until a compy appeared close by, letting out a little chirp. Moira could hear and see everything so clear; it was surreal. Her senses were heightened more than they ever have been.
The Novaraptor ran out of the bushes and placed itself right in front of the cave, aiming to snatch up the compy right next to it. Its feet were right in front of Moira's line of fire. Now was her chance.
A frown formed on her face as a loud gunshot rang out, scaring the compy away and causing the Novaraptor to squeal. She pulled the trigger again. Again. Again. Then again.
Its foot was practically blown off now, and it fell right onto its side with a loud crash. It yowled in pain and growled while squirming about on the ground helplessly. Moira felt the familiar pain in her heart swelling up again, reminding her of all the dinosaurs she'd seen dying and being killed ruthlessly. At her core, she felt bad for them. But for now she had to get rid of the threat.
She couldn't aim at its head from here, so she crawled out of the cave after she slid her rifle through the opening. She struggled a bit initially, but due to grasping onto some rocks near the cave she's able to find her balance again. Her leg hurt like hell, but she managed to balance on it enough to bend down and pick up her weapon. She held it and trembled.
It felt refreshing being outside again, she thought to herself. This was the first time in a day that she's felt the sun on her skin, after all. She processed the miserable Novaraptor crying out in front of her, and remembered what she must do.
She hesitantly aimed her rifle, and began shaking as she saw the creature's eyes through her scope. It looked like it was scared. She wanted to help it, desperately; but she was hired to kill them. She had to.
She looked away and grit her teeth as she pulled the trigger. An explosive sound rang out and she felt something warm splash onto her boots. She knew what it was. Blood.
She impulsively looked back at the Novaraptor's body, and felt a grin curl across her face. Its red feathers scattered everywhere as its head exploded; and the sight brought a smile to her face for a moment. It felt maddening.
She caught herself and immediately stopped smiling. Then she holstered her weapon, as she felt comfortable enough to balance on her legs again. Her shock set in – why had she just smiled at an animal's death?
Her eyes widened as an explosion boomed in the distance, surprising her as no one was supposed to be here but her.
With newfound fear and confidence, she walked toward the direction of the explosion with her rifle on her back.