Dinosaur Breakout (3 page)

Chapter Two

D
aniel sat silently contemplating
his terrifying dilemma. How long could he stay here? And just where was here? He sure wished Dactyl were with him. He wouldn’t feel so alone. No! On second thought, he didn’t wish that for a moment. Dactyl might have become some dinosaur’s dinner by now.

From the distance, a terrible roar and then some agonized bellowing rent the air, followed by loud crashing and something that sounded like trees being wrenched
from the ground. The
T. rex
must have caught the
Edmon
-tosaurus
! Or maybe something was attacking the
T. rex
, like a herd of
Triceratops
or some kind of raptors. Daniel cowered tightly into his hiding place, as the whole forest became alive with a cacophony of loud, terrifying sounds. What was he going to do? He couldn’t sit here, waiting forever. How was he going to get back home? And where was a safe place to go in the meantime?

He peeked through the bushes. Maybe he should make a move while all the creatures were focused on the
T. rex
battle? He knew the vast, never-ending sea trapped him from behind. And the horrific battle sounds seemed to be coming from his left, so that meant he’d have to go straight ahead or right, into the trees. Straight ahead was still too close to the fight and that was the direction the
T. rex
had come from in the beginning. So, right it was!

This seemed a good choice as the trees were growing on a slight rise. If only he could reach some higher ground, he might be able to get his bearings. Daniel moved quickly, yet stealthily, so as not to scare anything or attract attention to himself. All of his muscles tensed at the pressure of not knowing what he’d find or how quickly he’d have to react. His stomach did flip-flops and his head ached with each step he took; still, he didn’t dare stop to rest.

At first he followed a bit of a path that led away from the sea through the forest. But what if he met something fearsome and huge coming for a drink? He decided to choose routes that seemed less travelled, yet where he didn’t need to create a new path through the plant growth, for fear the sounds he made would draw attention to his movements.

The air was humid and full of strange piercing sounds. Every once in a while he heard little rustlings in the spongy undergrowth and odd plops, as if something had cascaded to the forest floor. Tiny plants and flowers poked through the decay of fallen leaves and twigs beneath his feet with each bouncy step he took. He rocked over slippery hidden roots and tangled vines. He’d seen similar vegetation on the hike he’d taken with his parents in the La Ronge forest area a few years before when they were visiting relatives. Then he’d been warned of bears and had even seen claw marks on the trees. That was a piece of cake compared to what he might find now!

Sometimes huge broken stumps and decaying fallen
logs lying at odd angles blocked Daniel’s path. Cautiously,
he made his way through dense stands of cycads and sycamore, noticing four-metre spikes of horsetail shooting up erratically. He knew it was one of the few prehistoric plants that still existed in the current world, although they were only a few centimetres high now, and probably a relative rather than a direct descendant of the original ones.

In places dead trees stood, waiting for a strong wind to topple them over, many covered with wide streamers of lichen, giving a ghostly feeling in the darkening forest. Small meadows appeared less frequently, and the gashes in trees were deeper and far longer and higher than anything he’d ever seen before. Occasional whistling calls ricocheted through the treetops.

Every once in a while, small mammals scurried across his path. He stopped in his tracks and waited for everything to be still and quiet again before venturing forward. Mostly he ignored the butterflies and moths, but kept a wary eye for bees and the possibility of spiders. He didn’t even want to think about poisonous snakes!

After several more minutes of following a bend in the path, he saw large marshy areas speckled with rushes and floating yellow flowers. He bent to take a closer look at the water lilies, and then stepped around a particularly large tree. Suddenly, an opossum-like mammal darted into his path. Startled, they both stared at one another for a split second, before the unsuspecting creature gave a long piercing shriek that echoed through the forest and then bounded away. It seemed to be hunting insects.

Daniel gasped and leaned against the tree trunk, his legs feeling abruptly weak. This was almost more than he could take! He waited for a reaction to the call, but nothing else rushed out at him. His stomach gurgled with hunger. Softly, he retrieved a water bottle and took a long swig. But he was afraid to remove any of the food, in case the noise and smells brought danger his way. He’d better find a place to hide soon. The pale sun was beginning to sink down to the treetops, casting an eerie glow over the landscape. If only he could find a safe place to rest before nightfall.

As if in sudden answer to his prayers, when he rounded
the next curve, he saw a clearing and, a few yards in the distance, a forest of towering trees. They looked like the giant redwoods he’d seen in photos of the forest in California. If he could reach them and climb one of them, he might be able to see a panoramic view of the scene below. He scanned the area quickly and determined the best way to proceed.

The day’s last piercing rays of sun warmed his back, and the undergrowth was dense and slippery from the moist air. Sometimes his feet slid off the mossy path, leaving him mired in weedy muck. Small rivulets of sweat trickled down his face from the humidity. His body felt clammy and his hands sticky, making progress slow. Besides this, his head throbbed from the original accident when he hit his head.

He sure wished he were home in bed with his mom taking care of him. Being a nurse, she’d know just what to do and what medicine to prescribe to make the pain go away. Right now, it was all he could do to keep his footing and move onwards without succumbing to certain death all around him. Soupy swamp and wet patches of grassy hummocks made walking difficult.

By the time he reached the edge of the redwoods, Daniel’s legs were scraped and his runner-clad feet sore and soaking wet. He was too weak to go any further. When he spied a huge hollow tree trunk that seemed unoccupied, with a small opening in front, he made his way over to it. The space was just big enough for him to sit inside. Little pellets like mouse droppings, bits of branches, and dead leaves were strewn on the musty dirt floor, which angled upwards slightly from the opening.

As he peered about, he realized that all he could see was more swampy forest. Along the way, he hadn’t seen any well-known predators, but then he wasn’t thinking straight and couldn’t recall which of the Cretaceous creatures might search for food where he sat. He hoped this would be a safe place to stay, at least for a bit.

No longer able to ignore his hunger, he slowly unzipped his backpack and slipped out a sandwich, furtively watching the scene around him. From this particular spot, he couldn’t see much below, but maybe that meant nothing could see him either! Chomping his sandwich quickly, and washing it down his dry throat with big gulps of water, Daniel soon finished the first one. He was just about to reach for another, when he thought again about how long he might have to stay in the prehistoric world. His other sandwich might have to last a long time!

Suddenly, he felt drained and tired. He stretched his body out as best he could in the cramped tree stump on the uneven, slanted ground. Using the backpack for a pillow, he tried to rest. He felt like a cat with one eye open for danger, and found little relief at first, jumping at every unusual sound. He was afraid of rolling out of his hiding spot if he made an unconscious move. His eyelids felt heavy, and he knew if he gave way to the drowsiness, he’d fall asleep. Aside from the unknown dangers around him, he also was afraid to doze off for fear his head might be concussed enough to keep him from waking up quickly.

As he struggled with exhaustion, a sudden scratching sound brought him abruptly upright. Something was above him in a crevice of the tree! He held his breath and waited. More scraping. Then silence.

Warily, he stood up and scanned the hollow space above him in the heavy gloom. At first he couldn’t make out any shapes, but then he noticed an almost oval opening several yards above. Lightning must have split the trunk at one time, and a heavy, misshapen branch protruded from the fracture. He realized that some sort of huge twiggy nest sat perched partly in the opening and partly in the crevice of the branch.

No more sounds came for a few moments. He took a deep breath, braced his feet against the inner walls of the tree trunk, and climbed upwards as if he were scaling a rock chimney. Just as he poked his head above the mound through the opening, another scuffling sound erupted.

Daniel jerked back and nearly fell, but not before he’d seen the inside of the giant nest! The walls were about thirty centimetres high and made from a mixture of twigs, lichen, and some kind of matted seaweed. Several huge eggs, one with a slightly cracked shell, were huddled in the middle of the forty-five-centimetre circumference. As he watched, a gangly, sharp-beaked, wet creature emerged from the cracked egg.

Drawing back watchfully, Daniel contemplated his latest find. He wanted another look at the nest. He moved as quietly as he could, keeping a vigilant eye on the peach-hued skies for the return of the parents. Obviously, they must be some kind of flying reptile, but what? And were the creatures dangerous?

As he drew himself up for another look at the nest, Daniel found himself thinking about the climate. Were there seasons here like back home? Was it spring, when baby birds hatched and other animals had their offspring? He certainly had seen a great many nests along the way. He knew some scientists figured there were two climates in prehistoric times: wet and dry. This must be the wet one, he thought, wiping the moisture off his forehead.

Then another thought struck him. There was no way he was high enough to escape predators. He needed to be way up in the tree. The trick was how to get there. From inside the tree trunk, he could go as far as the nest, but after that he’d have to scale the outside of the tree.

Daniel dropped back to the ground, took a drink of water, and pulled on his backpack. Nervously, he wiped his hands on his jeans to dry them off. Then, taking a deep breath, he began scaling the interior of the trunk again. He did another awkward crablike climb, lodging his feet wherever he could, and bracing his back against the inner tree as he pulled himself up with his hands. Warily, he stayed on the lookout for danger above and below as he scaled upwards.

When he reached the nest, the squawking of the one hatched creature increased. So did the sweat pouring off Daniel’s forehead. He wiped his face with his hand and contemplated how to climb around the nest, quickly. He sure didn’t want to tip it – or worse, end up in it! Nor did he want to be something’s dinner!

He managed to squeeze himself through the narrow opening between the branch and the nest, feeling the bark scrape along his back and arms. Carefully, he swung himself onto the branch and stood there catching his breath. The squawking coming from the nest increased as another gangly creature hatched. He had to get a move on!

As he eased himself partway around the tree trunk, he stretched for another large branch, barely within reach. He managed to pull himself over to it. For a few moments, he dangled precariously until his feet found a ridge in the bark of the trunk to rest on.

Momentarily, fear immobilized Daniel. He didn’t dare look down! But the fear of being torn apart by the sabre-sharp teeth of a
Tyrannosaurus rex
spurred him on. He eased his body closer to the trunk of the tree, keeping an arm around the bough. Holding tight, he pulled himself up into a sitting position on the branch. His head pounded and his chest heaved. He leaned against the sturdy trunk and went limp, breathing hard. He closed his eyes and rested for several minutes.

When he opened them, he found himself overlooking the ghostly expanse of the forest in the fading light. Beyond was the vast sea, peppered with small, marshy islands. The mouth of a river stemmed from the forest, from the direction the
T. rex
had come earlier, flowing into the sea. Around him, a hubbub of noise louder than anything he was used to in his everyday life: weird bird calls, insects keening, splashes of something sloshing through the marshes, a slight breeze, crunching of undergrowth in the trees, branches snapping.

As Daniel speculated about his environment, he scoured
the scene below. There seemed to be no sign of the
T. rex
. Through the darkening forest, he could just make out a ravaged area in the distance with uprooted trees and a large carcass of some kind – maybe the
Edmontosaurus
. Small animals ripped at its flesh, and huge pterosaur-like winged creatures flew overhead. One at a time they swooped down and plucked at the carcass, tearing off remnants. Fascinated, Daniel watched until one of them swung towards his hiding place. He scrunched himself against the tree trunk, trying not to let his movements show. He figured these prehistoric buzzards probably had great eyesight!

Moments later, he heard the great whoosh of air as the pterosaur flapped closer and a jostling of twigs signalled its landing on the nest. A terrible stench, like rotting meat, surged Daniel’s way. He couldn’t tell if it was the smell of carrion or the pterosaur that made him gag. He held his hand over his nose and breathed as noiselessly as possible through his mouth, listening to the mother’s strange shrieking, as irritating as nails scraping down a blackboard at school. He imagined her examining the eggs on the branch below him. Little crackling sounds came next. Then he heard a small chirruplike screech similar to an old unoiled door hinge. Another baby had hatched!