Behind the fleeing team, could be found a scene of total carnage. The G-Rex, its rubicund, scaly body glimmering in the rain, was caught up in a manic bloodlust, wreaking pure havoc, picking off reivers left, right and centre. Motorcycles scattered in multiple directions, darting down side-streets and into alleyways. Some of the riders however, were actually foolish enough to stand their ground, opening up fire on the ferocious, marauding beast.
Climbing into the cabin of his pick-up, Conn watched in his rear-view, as a group of three reivers, seated side-by-side on bikes, fired on the G-Rex with their pistols. The predator had its back to them, tail up in the air, the spiked appendage whipping about as it was busy mauling one of their comrades; the woman had been fleeing on foot. Too slow in making her escape, now the unfortunate soul was being shaken about like a rat at the mercy of a dog. Pesky and relatively useless as they were, the reivers’ bullets were still enough to reorientate the carnivore’s interest, piercing its slippery hide in several places and opening up small bloody wounds along its rough flank.
Repositioning itself, the G-Rex dropped the bloodied remains of the woman, the mass of flesh and bone landing with a hard splat! against the tarmac. Rounding on the trio of bikers, the big, burgundy, striped dinosaur bared its dagger-like teeth and whipped its tapered tail at them, letting out an angry roar. The G-Rex’s long appendage travelled just above the surface of the tarmac, before sweeping the bikers and their vehicles aside. Man and machine went flying, tumbling through the wet, glittering air. One reiver’s flight ended when his body splattered against the brick wall of a small building. Another- accompanied by his motorcycle- went hurtling through a convenience store window, disappearing from view amongst a swirling mass of crystal-like glass shards. Amongst the chaos, Conn had no idea where the other person ended up.
Reaching into the backseat, Conn unzipped one of his duffel bags, searching for Ambie, desperate to make sure the little creature was all right. He found two little crimson eyes looking back at him, Ambie’s ivory figure noticeably quivering with fear.
“So now you don’t want to get out of the bag?” Conn snapped with exasperation. “Asshole!”
Conn picked up movement on the periphery of his vision. He spied Lex’s vehicle taking off, moving down Main Street. This development forced him into action. Turning over the ignition, Conn released the handbrake. His pick-up rolled forward, tyres squealing against the surface of the wet road as they struggled to gain traction. Checking his rear-view, Conn quickly discovered the movement from the two bulky vehicles had attracted the G-Rex’s attention.
“Great!” the young man cried. “Just great!”
No more was the beast interested in the scattering band of brigands: it had found itself a new target. The Giganotosaurus lumbered after them, crushing a reiver underfoot as she emerged from underneath the chassis of a broken-down car, of all places. Picking up speed, the G-Rex gave out a mighty bellow, racing after them, its spike dewlap vibrating as it roared. Conn watched in the rear-view, as the monster’s salivating jaws drew nearer. All the same, quick as the G-Rex was, Conn figured if he could get a clear enough run, he’d be able to outrun it.
“Hold on, Ambie!”
The young man pumped the gas, cranking the gears and working the clutch as he went. The pick-up took off, slowly at first, but still it gained momentum nonetheless. Building up speed gradually, the Ford’s bulbous tyres kicked up a fine watery mist behind them. The G-Rex wasn’t about to give up though, fighting to close the gap between it and the absconding trucks. Long, larger-than-life strides, edged it ever closer to the bulbous truck, muscles flexing and contracting rhythmically in its legs and hips.
Lex’s pick-up suddenly shifted into top-gear, tearing away from Conn, giving him the opportunity he needed. As Lex’s vehicle drifted further into the distance, Conn worked his clutch, shifting into fourth. The G-Rex was virtually on top of him, now. Conn’s heart was racing, what’s more, his hands and arms shook uncontrollably, his anxiety levels going through the roof. This sensation was made all the worse looking in his rear-view. The young man could no longer see the G-Rex’s jaws, or any part of its head for that matter, instead only portions of its long forelimbs, and gigantic, broad, leathery chest.
Now or never…
Conn shifted the pick-up into fifth-
-just a second too late.
Forelimbs thrashing, the G-Rex lunged for the pick-up. Kicking out with it left leg, the G-Rex brought the tree trunk-thick limb down hard, striking out viciously with its trio of hooked talons. The beast’s razor-sharp claws slashed through the metal frame of the truck’s tailgate, carving their way right down to the towbar underneath. The force of the impact, coupled with eight tons of dinosaur at the end of it, caused the rear end of the truck to tip. This resulted in a kind of see-saw action which saw the nose of the F-350 rise up, front wheels hanging in the air and spinning, while the ass of its tray scraped along the wet bitumen, lowrider-style, the metal grinding and somehow- despite the wet ground- managing to spark, as it went.
Just as the colossal creature retrieved its foot, the G-Rex lost its balance, the monster hit flush across the chest by Audrey’s former dirt-bike sitting inside the wide tray. The bike was knocked loose from its moorings seconds before, as a result of the G-Rex’s violent attack. Stumbling awkwardly, the dinosaur fought to remain standing as the little vehicle bounced off its massive frame, flying out of sight. The G-Rex was forced to stop in order to regain some kind of balance, and thus watch the Ford careen out of control.
Escaping by the skin of his teeth, Conn’s Ford scraped up alongside other vehicles, parked along the sidewalk, only just managing to evade what should have been the big, reptilian predator’s killing blow.
Inside the truck’s cabin, Conn cussed and screamed as, without warning, the front of his big vehicle momentarily lifted off the ground. He felt like he was flying, his stomach doing loops. In the backseat, he could hear poor Ambie screeching in terror as well, the young raptor’s cries slightly muffled by the fabric of the bag the dinosaur reluctantly called home. Unexpectedly, the Ford crashed back to earth, bouncing several times as it landed on the wet road, tossing Conn roughly about the cabin’s interior, as he clung to the steering wheel. For a second, Conn thought the truck was going to flip or spin-out, but somehow it managed to keep its equilibrium.
Appearing out of nowhere, sparks flew by his head, flashing on the other side of the window as the pick-up collided with several parked vehicles. The collision was bone-jarring, sharp jolts of pain scattering throughout Conn’s body. Tyres screeching, he tried to right his out-of-control truck. Yanking hard on the steering wheel, and intermittently pumping the brakes, Conn pulled the vehicle back out into the middle of the road.
Checking his rear-view, he could see the figure of the black-striped Giganotosaurus growing smaller, framed by a pall of rainwater, gushing down from the angry heavens. The G-Rex, although stalled for now, kept its eyes narrowed on Conn’s pick-up.
20.
That night, and subsequent early hours of the next morning, following their break-out from Brookeborough, saw Conn and the others powering down the dark highway, trying to put as much distance between them and that accursed hell-hole. Eventually, it became too much for them (or Conn at least), with fatigue finally setting in. Adrenaline levels decreasing, Conn was now falling asleep at the wheel. Finally, after a long battle with himself, he gave in to his exhaustion. It was becoming too dangerous to continue driving.
Hailing Lex, who was still up ahead of him, the young man flashed his hi-beams at her, before pulling over to the side of the road. Lex followed suit, doing the same slightly further up the motorway. After a brief conversation between the two, the pair agreed to bed down for a few hours after re-fuelling the trucks. They needed their rest; otherwise one of them- or both- might end up crashing. Once sun-up came, it was agreed they would resume their journey.
Neither of them bothered to hide the vehicles. The lay of the land
wasn’t suitable for such an exercise; Lex expressing fears of getting bogged, which Conn fully agreed with. Instead, they simply posted up on the side of the highway. Conn had his Beretta- stolen from Chuck- for protection and Lex had her borrowed AR-15. If someone pulled up on them, they were just going to have to fight it out, and hope for the best. There was nothing else they could do.
Lex remained with Brett inside the grey pick-up all night, treating the latter’s wounds, which suited Conn just fine. Under different circumstances, he might not have been as understanding. For his part, Conn spent the night trying to catch some Z’s, pistol kept close at hand, ears pricked, listening for approaching interlopers. In between short bouts of sleep, he fed Ambie. Contained inside one of his duffel bags, Conn had hidden the thigh portion of a human leg taken from the morgue back at BPH. The only problem was that the blood from it had seeped into the fabric of the bag, and it was starting to stink a bit, too.
During feeding sessions, Ambie sat perched on its adoptive parent’s chest, gratefully taking portions of pink-red meat from Conn, white jaws snapping vigorously, saliva going everywhere, its tongue clacking wetly against the roof of its mouth. The little raptor would wake him every couple of hours, whining for more food. A couple of times, Conn even crept out of the pick-up to take Ambie to do his business, using the bushes as cover. The tiny critter didn’t have the confidence to range far away from Conn, which was good. Rather, the raptor just squatted down, and did its business right in front of him.
“Not shy, are ya bud?” Conn smirked.
When Conn wasn’t feeding Ambie, or taking the raptor to the toilet, he was drifting in and out of sleep. Unfortunately for him, it felt like every time he was about to drop off, Brett would cry out in the night, screaming like a lunatic, waking Conn and denying him of the rest he so desperately craved. He had lost track of time, so Conn wasn’t sure if Lex was still cleaning and dressing Brett’s wounds, or if the source of the commotion was the pain that accompanied Brett’s migraines which Lex had told him about during their earlier discussion. Conn couldn’t imagine the pain Brett was in. A few days ago, he might not have cared about the guy’s problems, but after everything they had been through together, Conn had to admit he felt some amount of pity for the guy. He was just glad the sadistic Neanderthal hadn’t got a hold of him.
Eventually, Brett’s cries became less frequent, and the gaps in between Conn’s naps became more pronounced.
Startled by something, perhaps a bad dream, Conn bolted upright. Looking about somewhat confused, he found little Ambie curled up on top of his chest in a fashion reminiscent of a housecat lounging on a cushion. His sudden movement had managed to waken the raptor, who was now watching him with bleary scarlet eyes, its narrow head slightly raised.
Struggling to emerge from his REM cycle, Conn’s eyes and brain worked slowly to remind him he was inside the cabin of the blue F-350, sprawled out on the backseat. Bit by bit, he came to recognise the pick-up’s familiar interior. Rubbing sleep from his eyes, he looked out the adjacent window. The sun was rising and with it would come the heat that Conn so vehemently detested. Tired as he was, he knew it was time to go.
The young man reminded himself that it was only a couple of more days on the road and then they would be back in Havenfort. Which meant Conn would be able to see Anthony again, and bring him the medication he needed. Everything would be all right, if they could just make it back to Havenfort. At least, that’s what the young man tried to tell himself.
Think of Anthony.
“Okay then, Ambie,” Conn scooped up the sleepy raptor, “time to get back in the bag.”
As the raptor drew closer to the duffel bag, it realised what was happening. Shaking off the last remnants of sleep, Ambie began kicking with its back legs, ripping with its tiny claws and scratching the back of Conn’s hand, determined not to be shoved back inside the foul-smelling sack.
“You’re worse than a toddler!” Conn exclaimed angrily.
It was too early in the morning for Conn to be dealing with Ambie’s shit. Cursing at the slippery creature, Conn finally managed to slide Ambie into the duffel bag, hurriedly zipping the sack shut before the chalky raptor had a chance to escape. Sealing the dinosaur inside, it was almost as if the bag came to life. Ambie battered the sides trying to get out, squealing the whole time, hissing like an enraged mongoose. Exasperated, Conn stepped out of the vehicle and slammed the door shut behind him, leaving the raptor to continue its paroxysm alone.
“Retard,” he mumbled to himself.
Walking towards Lex’s truck, pistol tucked into the back of his pants, Conn fixed his gaze ahead. He noticed that Lex and Brett were already up and moving. Both were lingering about the grey vehicle, one on either side of it. Going by the look of them, they were freshly-risen as well. To be honest, Conn thought they looked terrible. Then again, he probably looked just as rough as they did. Lack of sleep was a real bitch, and it looked like she had visited all three of them at some time in the recent past.
Lex’s hair was scraggy-looking and unkempt, the result of days on the road. Still, crazy hair or not, Conn wouldn’t hesitate to jump her bones the minute she gave him the okay. As for Brett, he looked like death on stilts. The big guy had his Kevlar vest back on, covering up his horrific injuries. Although, Conn caught glimpses of white bandages underneath his armoured attire, some of which were tinged with blood. His features remained pale, at least paler than usual for him. That being the case, Conn supposed it was a good thing he was on his feet. Clearly still weak from his ordeal, Brett had an arm out, using the chassis of the truck to keep him steady. He watched Conn approach through glazed eyes, the green in them more olive than emerald now. Lex on the other hand smiled when she saw Conn, but didn’t move from the driver’s side of the truck, her hand hovering about the door handle. Conn got the impression she was keen to leave.
“How are you feeling?” Conn asked Brett, his concern genuine.
“Like shit,” Brett gave a weak smile. “My head still hurts like a bitch.”
“Have you had any rations?” Lex inquired of Conn.
“I’ll eat while I drive,” he answered.
“Okay,” Lex nodded. “We’ve already eaten, so we should probably get going.”
“You good to drive?” Conn questioned Brett.
“I don’t think so,” Brett admitted, sullenly. “I’ll work the MG.”
Conn didn’t like the sound of that. He wasn’t sure if he trusted Brett enough to use it. Conn’s expression must have betrayed his inner thoughts, because Brett quickly picked up on his discomfort.
“What?” Brett straightened up. “You still don’t trust me?”
“Why should I?” Conn kept the other man’s gaze.
“This isn’t the time for a pissing contest!” Lex said, in an irritated tone to both of them.
“It’s safer, if you both drive,” Brett told them, refusing to fold under Conn’s gaze. “My migraines haven’t gone away. When they hit, I can’t see. What good am I going to be blind behind the wheel?”
“About as much good if you use that .50 cal whilst blind.” Conn grimaced. “How are you gonna shoot what you can’t see?” Conn hoped this line-of-argument might mask his true concerns regarding Brett’s use of the machine-gun.
“There’s nothing more dangerous than a blind man with a gun,” Brett smiled, his chest heaving. “At least, that’s what my old grandpa used to tell me, when out hunting.”
Dangerous… exactly.
Conn didn’t reply. Instead, he looked at Lex, who didn’t say anything either. She was clearly nervous at the prospect of putting Brett behind the .50 cal., considering all the issues they’d had with him thus far. Although, she didn’t seem as worried as Conn was. Conn got the feeling she’d crack if Brett pushed the issue. There was just something in her gaze that made him feel this way.
“I need you both, as much as you need me,” Brett gripped the frame of the F-350, “if we are going to survive this.” Brett t
hen signalled towards his injuries with his free hand, “I mean, look at me.”
“C’mon Conn,” Lex interceded, “we are on the home-stretch. Let’s just go! We’re wasting time!”
Conn remained silent, clenching and unclenching his jaw. He was about to say something when Brett interrupted him.
“Well, I’d estimate you’ve got less than two minutes to make your mind up.” Brett told Conn flatly, pointing past him.
Spinning on his heel, Conn looked back further down the highway. The horizon, lined by a rising, wavering mirage, was dotted with a succession of small, black figures, seemingly no bigger than matchheads at their current distance. Conn counted twelve of them, although he couldn’t be sure. At this distance, the sound of their motorbike engines was barely audible. In fact, they were mere mutterings floating on a weak, dry breeze. Be that as it may, Conn recognized the danger that the approaching figures presented to them.
“I’ll help you into the tray,” Conn conceded in the face of the impending danger.
21.
“Go Lex!” Conn yelled behind him. “We’ll hold them off! Just go, now!”
Lex raced for her automobile, not looking back.
Reaching the blue truck, Conn helped his compatriot climb into the tray of the bulky vehicle. Using the tyre as a prop, Brett threw a limber leg over the side, hobbling up into the tray, before positioning himself behind the big machine gun a second later. After checking it was in working order, he waited for the reivers to come into range, expectantly looking down his sights. At this point, he realized the convoy of reivers was gaining on them, quicker than Brett had initially anticipated.
Shit, it seemed, was about to get real.
Conn slid into the driver’s seat. Reaching into the back and grabbing Ambie’s bag, he brought the raptor into the front with him, so he could keep an eye on the jumpy little critter. He could hear the reptile squeaking nervously inside. Opening the zip just a tad to let some fresh air, Conn found the raptor curled up, shivering slightly. Regarding Conn nervously, Ambie made cheeping sounds similar to a mouse.
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