The Extinction Trials

by S. M. Wilson

  The raptors were on it in an instant, tearing part of it and letting the egg roll out onto the forest floor. The first raptor tapped the shell noisily with its jaw, cracking the already fragile shell. The messy contents spilled out, only to be gobbled up by the squawking raptors.

  Kronar righted himself, his breathless face coming level with Storm’s. The shrieks beneath them continued, but Storm could only see Kronar’s ghost-white face in front of her. Sweat was dripping from his forehead; tiny blue veins stood out beneath his skin. Every part of him was trembling.

  She was scared. She was terrified for her life. But Kronar was far beyond that. She reached over and shook his shoulder. “Breathe, Kronar. Breathe.”

  The shake seemed to give him the start that he needed. He took a long deep breath, filling his lungs slowly.

  She hid her face on his shoulder and shuddered. “They just ate their own egg. What kind of creatures are they?”

  There was a thud and the tree shook. Another velociraptor was trying to reach them. But every jump was followed by a fall. The tree branches were too precarious for them. Gripping with their claws just seemed to make the raptors see-saw from the branches.

  Storm’s heart pounded against her chest – she stretched for a branch above and pulled herself up further. “Move higher,” she encouraged. “The branches are thicker. It looks like we might be here for a while.”

  Kronar pulled himself up next to her, splaying his legs across the thick branch and holding onto the trunk. He rested his head against the rough bark, swaying a little as one of the raptors hit the tree again. They showed no sign of giving up.

  After a while Kronar’s stomach rumbled loudly and he gave a sigh. His eyes remained closed. “Why didn’t we bring food?”

  Storm let out a laugh. She couldn’t help it. It was so ridiculous. If she ever got off this continent and lived to tell the tale, no one would believe that Kronar had been thinking of his stomach in such a moment. She pointed to her back. “We did.” She shrugged the pack off her shoulders and pulled out her water bottle. “Want to settle in for a while?”

  It was odd. This was the first time she’d felt a real connection with one of her Norden teammates – but if Kronar hadn’t helped her up here, she might not have made it.

  He shook his head. “Being chased by raptors definitely plays havoc with the brain.” A serious look came over his face. “I don’t think my legs will ever stop shaking.”

  She understood. She understood everything. Kronar had never pretended to be brave. She’d never really found out his motivation for being here. He’d always sort of been in the background to the more vocal Leif and Rune.

  She touched his arm. “Thank you. What you did was amazing.” She shook her head. “I don’t know if I could have done it. All I could see was the blood on its teeth.” She shivered. The words seemed to stick in her throat. “Where do you think that came from?” Her voice was trembling – she was scared of the answer. She didn’t even want to think about it.

  Kronar’s eyes widened. “There was blood? I didn’t notice – I mean, I didn’t really look that closely. I was focused on other things.” He was panicking now and she realized her mistake. Her thoughts had naturally gone to Lincoln, but he was thinking about Leif. He’d already lost one friend. Losing another would probably finish him completely.

  “It could be from an animal. Maybe the raptors had been hunting.”

  Kronar looked upwards, staring at the sky. “The smoke is gone. Did you notice? There’s nothing there. What happened to the fire?”

  She hadn’t even given it a thought. She whipped her head from side to side, looking through the trees and searching the sky for any sign of the plume of smoke. But it was clear. Not even a wisp remained.

  Her stomach clenched. Lincoln and Leif. Please let them be safe.

  “I don’t know,” she whispered. The tree juddered again and she cringed. The raptors weren’t going anywhere.

  They sat in silence while the raptors continued to stalk around the base of the trunk. It was going to be a very long day.

  In theory the plan had seemed so simple.

  Light the fire just far enough away from the raptors’ nest to attract the creatures’ attention – they’d watched them for a few hours and discovered just how inquisitive the raptors really were…enough, they hoped, for their plan to work. Then run to the edge of a nearby rocky chasm and scramble down the ledge they’d found while the other two snatched the eggs.

  But things didn’t always go to plan.

  Lincoln and Leif had barely started stoking the fire, sending the thinnest of grey-green tendrils into the sky, when the raptors had appeared on the crest of the hill.

  It was only after Leif had made a kind of strangled sound at the back of his throat, then squeaked “Run!” that Lincoln realized what was happening.

  He’d glanced over his shoulder, his heart instantly in his mouth as he saw how close the raptors were – and getting closer all the time. Watching them from a distance had been intimidating – but being near enough to actually see the tiny feathers on their grey skin, to notice that their claws were much bigger than human hands, and to see the predatory glint in their eyes made the danger all too real.

  Leif was already running, but Lincoln caught up fast, adrenaline flowing to his muscles. Their feet threw up little clouds of dust around them.

  There was a loud noise behind them – a high-pitched caw. Followed by another, then another. “They can talk?” Lincoln shot at a red-faced Leif as they kept pounding along.

  The look in response was one of pure terror. The thudding behind them was impossibly close. In every scenario they’d imagined, they’d started their run long before the velociraptors had even known they were there.

  The cliff edge was clearly in sight. They’d tied the two ropes from their packs so they could grab them as they jumped over the edge. Even if they didn’t land on the small ledge one sectar down they could still scramble there with the help of the ropes. The hope was that, if the raptors decided to follow them, they would land head-first on the rocks at the bottom of the chasm.

  Lincoln’s chest was tight, his muscles burning. He’d always imagined he could run faster than Leif, but being chased by dinosaurs was obviously giving Leif the extra burst of energy he needed.

  The thundering steps were close – too close; he could feel the creatures’ heat against his back, smell their stink all around him. Then, just as they reached the cliff edge, there was a slash of pain down Lincoln’s left shoulder. And from the corner of his eye he glimpsed a flash of white teeth in vicious jaws lunging at Leif’s back. One second the pack was there. The next it was ripped away.

  Lincoln and Leif dived almost simultaneously, grabbing the ropes just in time. Lincoln swung through the air, the rope burning his hands as it jerked him back sharply towards the jagged face of the cliff. The momentum was too strong, he couldn’t act quickly enough and he let out a yelp as his shoulder crashed against the hard rock face.

  Leif had been luckier. He’d landed on the ledge, but he still looked shocked and stunned, his breath coming in ragged bursts, as Lincoln scrambled over to join him.

  There was noise above them. The raptors had apparently been too clever to career off the edge of the cliff and land on the rocks below. Instead they cawed and scraped at the ground above.

  The ledge seemed smaller than Lincoln had first thought. He flattened his back against the rock, sliding down until both he and Leif were sitting precariously on the edge. A few small stones crumbled away. Leif gulped and wrapped the rope around his waist. “Let’s take no chances.”

  Lincoln still hadn’t managed to catch his breath. He followed Leif’s lead and tied his rope around his waist – at least if the ledge gave way they would still be anchored.

  “What happened?” asked Leif.

  The adrenaline surge was leaving Lincoln’s body. “I have no idea,” he sighed. “But that was too close for comfort.”

  Leif
snorted. “You think?”

  Lincoln stared out at the mountains before them. Green and grey as far as the eye could see. The cawing and scratching above them continued.

  This could be a long wait.

  “How long have we been here now?” Lincoln was nursing his injured shoulder – it was stinging more than he cared to admit. It was a pretty deep gash according to Leif, so they’d patched it as best they could with a torn strip of clothing from Lincoln’s backpack. He’d no painkillers. Just that weird tub of balm with no instructions on how to use it. It could have been for his mouth or his backside for all he knew. No proper medicines had been included with the supplies. He doubted the Stipulators had even considered wasting such precious commodities on them.

  Every part of his body was numb. It felt like they’d been perched on this ledge for hours and darkness was falling. “I have no idea,” said Leif, still sitting next to him, looking every bit as uncomfortable as Lincoln was. “Do you think it’s safe to climb back up?”

  Lincoln was growing frustrated. The plan had gone wrong – they’d never expected the raptors to get that close. He could only hope that Kronar and Storm were safe and had managed to get one of the eggs. “Well, we can’t stay here for ever.” He winced as he tried to ease the backpack onto his shoulders.

  It had been quiet for the last few hours and he was anxious to find out what had happened to Storm and Kronar, so he grabbed hold of the rope and pulled himself up until he could peer over the edge of the cliff.

  There was nothing there. The plain in front of them was empty, the remnants of their distant fire a pile of ashes.

  “It’s clear,” he said quickly, glancing from side to side. “Let’s go.” He groaned as he scrambled back over the edge of the cliff. Leif was right by his side. Lincoln stretched his cramped muscles and arched his aching back. Leif’s pack lay abandoned on the ground, torn and dusty, but otherwise intact, and Leif snatched it up. After stowing the ropes away in their bags, they cautiously set off back the way they’d come.

  As they trekked, Leif stopped to squint at the remains of the fire. He bent down and let some earth and ashes run between his fingers. “Look, Lincoln. There are piles of earth on the fire. Did the raptors put it out?” His voice was raised in wonder. It did seem beyond belief.

  Lincoln took a few steps closer. There were claw marks on the ground, as if the raptors had clawed around the fire to dump earth on it. It sent chills down his spine.

  These creatures seemed to show intelligence. Yes, they were predators. Yes, they saw the humans as prey. But the territorial behaviour, the family-type behaviour was ringing alarm bells in his head. No one had forewarned them about this. No one had even suggested that the dinosaurs were anything other than mindless creatures. Their behaviour seemed to prove otherwise.

  An uncomfortable rivulet of sweat ran between his shoulder blades. He’d assumed their own intelligence was their biggest advantage against the dinosaurs. If that wasn’t the case, would they even get off Piloria alive?

  He looked around carefully. There was no sign of the raptors anywhere. “Let’s go while we’ve got a chance. Who knows how they’ll behave at night. We might be at even more risk now than in the daytime.”

  The hike to the forest took them more than an hour. There were a few heart-stopping moments when a rustle or noise had them heading for the nearest hiding place, but eventually they made it back. The strange dark trees loomed over them, dense enough to get lost in. There was no sign of Storm or Kronar.

  “What do you think?” he asked Leif. Lincoln was scanning the surrounding area, looking for any sign of them. But there was nothing, nothing at all.

  Leif pointed forward. “What about there? The ground looks trampled.”

  Lincoln nodded. He bent down at the entrance to the forest. Leif was right, there were claw marks and a clear path had been trampled through the trees. “Do you hear anything?” he whispered.

  Leif shook his head. “Let’s go. It’s getting late. We need to find somewhere to camp for the night – and find out if they got any eggs.”

  The boys walked silently through the forest, conscious of every cracking twig beneath their feet. “Storm,” Lincoln hissed into the trees. “Kronar?”

  They walked further, the already dimming light fading to purple as they disappeared deeper into the trees. They were still following marks on the ground, signs of trampled undergrowth.

  Leif let out a gasp. “Look.” He pointed to a tree that had claw marks around the lower trunk. Remnants of a backpack were lying on the ground. Both of them looked up.

  “Storm? Kronar?”

  There was a movement above them, a rustle from the thick branches.

  “Lincoln!” Storm’s voice cut through the foliage.

  Relief flooded through him. “Kronar?”

  “Yes,” came the reply. “Is it safe down there?” followed the anxious question.

  Lincoln looked around. “As far as we can tell.”

  Storm replied, “Give us a minute to get down.” It took more than a minute. Scrambling down the tree was awkward, her backpack getting in the way.

  “Just throw it down!”

  “We can’t. We might break the egg,” Storm called back quietly.

  Lincoln felt a little surge of adrenaline. Egg. They had an egg.

  “If it’s not already broken,” mumbled Kronar as he finally landed on the earth next to Lincoln.

  Lincoln was still watching Storm as she made her way down the tree. He held out his hand towards her as she reached the bottom branches, but she frowned at it and jumped past.

  “What happened?”

  Storm pushed her hair out of her face and straightened her tunic. “We got chased. The fire worked. The bigger raptors left and the younger ones soon got bored guarding the nest and made their way over to the waterhole. We had time to grab the eggs but before we knew it the rest of the raptors were coming back over the hill. So much for your distraction, what happened?” She sounded annoyed.

  Lincoln put his hands on his hips. He was listening to her, but he couldn’t concentrate. His brain was fixed on one thing. “Egg. You’ve got an egg?”

  She turned around and Kronar rustled about in her backpack and pulled one out. “We had eggs. Now we just have one. The raptors got the other one.” He shuddered. “They ate it.”

  “They ate the other egg?” Lincoln felt sick. Just when he thought he knew something about these creatures, they did something else that horrified him.

  He stared at the egg. It filled the palm of Kronar’s hand. For Lincoln it was the oddest feeling – almost a disappointment. It was nondescript. It could be an egg of any beast. How would they convince the Stipulators it was a raptor’s?

  “We lit the fire but the raptors put it out,” Leif said absent-mindedly as he gazed at the egg too.

  “What?” Storm’s voice rose. She looked from one to the other. “What did you say?”

  “They kicked the fire out.”

  Storm glanced towards Kronar then looked back. “How? What do you mean?”

  Lincoln was getting annoyed. They had to find somewhere safe for the egg. They couldn’t afford to let it get damaged. “The raptors kicked it out with the surrounding sand and earth.”

  “How would they know how to do that?” Storm demanded. “They chased us, Lincoln. They chased us through the forest. They jumped into the branches. They tried to figure out a way to get to us. They knew we had the eggs. They stayed here for hours – there was no way we could come down from the trees.”

  It was a horrible sensation. No matter how much Lincoln tried to push it into his subconscious, it kept creeping back up again and again. These creatures were intelligent. They might be predatory. They might be vicious. But they were also intelligent.

  “You’re hurt.” Storm had just noticed his bleeding shoulder. For a few minutes he’d actually managed to forget about the sting. She reached up to touch it and he pulled back.

  Her face paled. “Th
at was your blood we saw on the raptor’s teeth.”

  He didn’t even want to think about it. Didn’t want to consider what might have happened if he’d been even a little slower.

  She looked back to Kronar. “That’s probably why they were in such a frenzy. The alpha had got the taste of Lincoln’s blood.” She paused. “That – or the fact we stole their eggs.” Storm flinched as she said the words and stared down at the ground.

  There was silence for a moment. It was clear she was still uncomfortable with all this. But this wasn’t the time and place to talk about it. Storm didn’t have the same reasons for being here that he did.

  “Let’s find somewhere to sleep. We need to hike most of the day tomorrow to reach the pterosaurs’ nest.” Lincoln was back on task. They had one egg and limited time. They had to move on.

  “Any idea where we should camp?” asked Leif.

  “We’ll find somewhere,” said Lincoln as he pushed through the forest. His shoulder was smarting. The sooner they finished the tasks and got off Piloria, the better.

  The second night was worse than the first. Again, there was no shelter. No one wanted to sleep anywhere the raptors had been – which ruled out the cliffs and the forest.

  “I hate this place, I hate it,” mumbled Kronar as they sat down for the night. They’d settled on the edge of a plain close to some bushes and a few thickets of small trees.

  He mixed a little water with some of his ration pack. “What are we going to say to Rune’s family? How are we going to tell them what’s happened? They counted on him coming back.”

  Lincoln shifted uncomfortably.