by Ada Hopper
CONTENTS
Chapter 1 Blast to the Past
Chapter 2 A Jurassic Mistake
Chapter 3 Walking with Dinos
Chapter 4 Close Escape!
Chapter 5 Operation: Rescue Stego
Chapter 6 Don’t Disturb the Dinos
Chapter 7 Into the Pterosaur’s Lair
Chapter 8 Prehistoric Showdown
Chapter 9 Nightfall
Chapter 10 Not So Far Away
About Ada Hopper and Sam Ricks
Chapter 1
Blast to the Past
* * *
Fwoosh. A hot breeze rustled through the jungle tree leaves.
Screech! A wild animal’s cry echoed in the distance.
Rummmmmble.
“What was that?” Laura Reyes whispered nervously.
“That was my stomach,” said Cesar Garcia. “I should have eaten a bigger breakfast.”
The friends rolled their eyes. But another wild animal cry rang out, and Laura, Cesar, Gabriel Martinez, and Stego the Stegosaurus huddled closer together.
“Guys,” said Gabriel, “I do not think we are in Newtonburg anymore.”
Gabe was definitely right. These three whiz kids, known as the DATA Set, were indeed no longer in their home town of Newtonburg. The question was, where were they?
“Okay, let’s retrace our steps from the beginning,” said Laura. “Dr. B.’s growth ray accidentally brought our toy animals to life.”
“Then they started growing,” continued Cesar.
“And we had to sneak them into the zoo,” remembered Gabe. “Except for Stego.”
“Yeah,” Cesar chimed in. “Dr. B. was going to use his time machine to send Stego back in time.”
“Then what happened?” Laura asked. “Where are we?”
“Dr. B. happened,” Gabe said. “I’ll bet his time machine must have malfunctioned just like the growth ray did. He accidentally sent us to a rain forest.”
“I’ve read lots of books on rain forests,” said Cesar. “And none of them had one of those. . . .”
He pointed overhead.
Soaring high above them was an enormous creature with a brightly colored head crest. It had leathery wings that stretched wide and a narrow, razor-sharp beak.
“Please tell me that’s a bird,” Laura said in disbelief.
“Not unless it was hit by Dr. Bunsen’s growth ray too,” said Cesar. “There aren’t any birds that large that can fly.”
“It’s not a bird,” Gabriel said. His eyes suddenly shone brightly, and a huge grin crossed his face. “It’s a Pterosaur!”
“A what?” Laura asked.
“Dr. B.’s invention worked.” Gabe breathed. “He sent us back with Stego to the Jurassic period. DATA Set . . . we’re in the time of the dinosaurs!”
Chapter 2
A Jurassic Mistake
* * *
Meanwhile, back in present-day Newtonburg, Dr. Gustav Bunsen was very worried.
“DATA Set?” he called.
But Gabriel, Laura, and Cesar were nowhere to be seen.
“Oh, dear . . .”
Admittedly, he had forgotten to warn the three friends to stand back when he activated his time-travel machine. But surely he hadn’t . . .
“They must be hiding,” the doctor assured himself. “Very clever, my young friends! An amusing prank. You can come out now!”
Dr. Bunsen looked behind his molecular generator. No Gabriel. He checked underneath his UFO detector. No Laura. He opened the double doors of his oversize pantry. All the food was still there. No Cesar.
“Well, then, there’s only one explanation,” the doctor declared. “They have been sent along with Stego back to the prehistoric era. On the one hand, it’s quite exciting. My invention worked! On the other hand, I’ve almost certainly doomed them to a dinosaur-dinner fate. . . .”
The doctor looked at his machine. “But what I have sent back in time, I can bring home again! I just need to reverse the polarization . . . and reset the time continuum frequency . . . and huzzah!”
The doctor pressed the control button, expecting the same bright green flash as before, which would bring the DATA Set home.
Beep. Boop. Bvzhooooooomm . . .
His time machine shut down.
“Oh. Well. Now, that is the worst time for a time machine to break.”
Suddenly, the front doorbell rang.
“Of course!” Dr. Bunsen cried. “I must have sent the children back in time a few minutes. They are at my door now. I have not messed up in a Jurassic way!”
Dr. Bunsen took the basement laboratory steps two at a time as he raced to the front door. He flung it wide open . . .
. . . and outside was a child with an incredibly small head!
“Ahhh!” screamed the doctor.
“WAHHH!” cried the child.
“Dr. Bunsen?” It was Mrs. Martinez, holding Gabe’s little sister. She smiled politely. “I’m Gabriel’s mother, and this is Juanita, his baby sister.”
“Ah, yes,” the worried doctor mumbled to himself. “A little baby. That does make more sense than a grown-up with a very tiny head.”
“Yes, well, I am looking for Gabriel,” said Mrs. Martinez. “Have you seen him? Is he here?”
“I see.” The doctor nervously adjusted his goggles on his head. “I’m afraid he’s not here. At least, not at this moment. In time.”
Gabe’s mother shook her head with a confused smile. “Gabe mentioned that you have a silly way of saying things. Well, as long as they’re playing safely, just let Gabe know to be home in time for dinner. I have a special treat for him.”
“The operative word there being ‘safely,’ as it were.” The doctor rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, I shall certainly let him know to be home. In time. For dinner.”
Gabe’s mother laughed, a bit bewildered, before she turned down the walkway.
Dr. Bunsen, however, was starting to grow more worried than excited.
How could he have the DATA Set home in time for dinner when he wasn’t even sure where in time they were?
Chapter 3
Walking with Dinos
* * *
“I cannot believe this!” Gabe exclaimed as the friends walked through the jungle. “We’re seeing real live dinosaurs. This is so cool!”
“You may think it’s cool,” said Laura. “But I don’t want to become a dino’s lunch!”
“Me neither,” added Cesar.
“Relax, guys,” Gabe said with a confident grin. “I know everything there is to know about dinosaurs. I’ll make sure we stay clear of the dangerous ones. No sweat.”
It was true. Gabe was fascinated by dinosaurs. He knew which era each one lived in, what they liked to eat, and even which dinosaurs were not actually dinosaurs. (Correcting his science teacher when she referred to a prehistoric reptile as a “dinosaur” was one of Gabe’s favorite challenges.)
“But how are we going to get home?” Laura insisted. “Where will we stay?”
“What will we eat?” asked Cesar, suddenly alarmed. “I am not surviving on prehistoric bugs!”
“Don’t worry,” Gabe replied with a ridiculously wide smile still plastered on his face. “I’m sure Dr. B. will find us. Maybe he even meant to send us back, so we could help Stego find a nice herd of Stegosauruses to live with.”
Gabe patted the once-mini Stegosaurus affectionately on the nose. The effects of Dr. Bunsen’s growth ray were still working on the tiny dinosaur. It would take a few more days before he reached his full size.
“Maybe,” Laura said slowly. “But I hope Dr. B. doesn’t take too long.”
“We’ll be fine,” Gabe assured her. “I’ll be your d
ino-guide! I know which ones are carnivores and eat meat—we’ll steer clear of those. I know which ones are herbivores and eat plants—we’ll probably still steer clear of those. And I know which ones—”
As Gabe was speaking, the giant Pterosaur from earlier suddenly swooped down, snatched up Stego, and flew off!
“STEGO!” the friends screamed.
“I’m guessing that dinosaur is a carnivore?” Cesar cried as they chased after it.
“Pterosaurs are technically flying reptiles,” Gabe shouted. “But I thought they only ate fish! At least, that’s what scientists say.”
“Maybe they got it wrong,” Laura said, leaping over a puddle of prehistoric goo.
The friends ran as fast as they could, but soon the Pterosaur was out of sight.
“We have to save Stego.” Gabe panted, holding his side.
Just then the ground shook with several stomps.
The friends turned. An giant-size dinosaur was stalking toward them.
“Gabe, please tell me that’s an herbivore,” Cesar said.
Gabe shook his head. “That’s definitely a carnivore . . . and it spotted us! Run!”
Chapter 4
Close Escape!
* * *
“I used to think T. rexes were cool!” Laura cried as the friends bounded through the jungle.
“That’s not a T. rex,” Gabe shouted back. “It’s an Allosaurus. T. rexes won’t appear until the late Cretaceous period. That’s, like, ninety million years from now.”
“Whatever it is, it would be cooler if it wasn’t trying to eat us!” Cesar yelled.
The friends ran as fast as they could, but the huge dinosaur was gaining on them.
“We can’t outrun it!” Laura realized.
“I have an idea,” Gabe shouted. “Run in a zigzag. We can confuse it!”
Quickly, the friends began zipping in and out of the thick jungle trees. The Allosaurus could not run through the tight spaces of the forest as easily as the kids. It roared in frustration.
“It’s working!” exclaimed Gabe. “Climb up one of these trees while we have a head start!”
The friends leaped onto the low limbs of the nearest tree and began to shimmy up. But the trunk was slick. Cesar slipped!
“Catch!” Laura cried. She tossed him a piece of vine. Cesar gripped it tight, and Gabe and Laura hoisted him up just as the Allosaurus reached them. It chomped wildly, barely missing Cesar’s sneaker.
“Whoa!” Cesar yelled, yanking his foot up. “That was really close!”
“Keep on climbing,” instructed Gabe. “If it can’t see us, it will think it’s lost us.”
The three friends climbed up, up, up. Down below, the Allosaurus roared and banged against the tree trunk. But soon the kids were out of sight. After a while, the dinosaur stopped roaring. It circled a few times, confused. Then another animal cry rang out in the jungle. Eagerly, the Allosaurus stalked off in search of an easier meal.
“Phew.” Cesar sighed. “Thanks, guys.” He looked at his sneaker. It was covered in Allosaurus saliva. “Ewwwww. Dino drool!”
“We still need to save Stego,” Gabe reminded them.
“Gabe, do you really think we can find him?” Laura’s face grew serious. “I mean, by now wouldn’t the Pterosaur have . . . ?”
Gabe shook his head. “No. I’m telling you, Pterosaurs eat fish. Not dinosaurs.”
“Maybe it didn’t want to eat him,” Cesar offered optimistically. “Maybe it wanted to protect Stego from the Allosaurus.”
“Yeah, that must be it!” Gabe added hopefully. “It must have wanted to protect Stego from the Allosaurus. All we need to do is find the Pterosaur’s nest, and we’ll find Stego!”
Laura looked doubtful. “Gabe, I’m not sure . . .”
“That’s what we’re doing,” Gabe said firmly. “The DATA Set doesn’t leave one of our own behind.”
“Okay,” said Cesar. “Let’s just steer clear of the carnivores from now on.”
“Good idea,” said Gabe. “Maybe we can see the Pterosaur’s nest from the top of this tree.”
The friends began to shimmy even higher. Laura reached the tallest branch first. She pushed back the leaves and gasped.
“Can you see the Pterosaur’s nest?” Gabe asked eagerly.
“Not exactly . . . ,” whispered Laura. “Guys, we have another little problem.”
Staring straight back at them was a dinosaur with a neck as tall as the tree they had just climbed. And this time, there was no escape!
Chapter 5
Operation: Rescue Stego
* * *
The dinosaur stared at the DATA Set. The DATA Set stared at the dinosaur.
Then it lowered its head toward Cesar, mouth open wide.
“Why does everything here want to eat me!” Cesar cried.
CHOMP! The dino took a huge bite . . . right out of the branch next to Cesar.
“It’s okay,” said Gabe. “That’s a Diplodocus. It only eats plants.”
Cesar sighed. “Can we please establish which dinosaurs eat meat and which eat plants before I have a heart attack?”
The enormous dinosaur munched the branch slowly, staring at the kids. Then it plodded away, stretching its long neck out to take bites from the treetops as it went.
“Okay,” said Gabe. “Now let’s look for the Pterosaur’s nest.”
The friends pushed back the oversize leaves from the top of the tree and gazed out over the landscape. What they saw took their breath away.
The valley was filled with all kinds of dinosaurs as far as they could see!
“I don’t believe this,” said Gabe.
“It’s incredible,” said Laura.
“It’s the Pterosaur!” cried Cesar. He pointed. Not far away was a large outcropping of rocks. Circling a cliff high up was the Pterosaur!
“Good job, Cesar!” Gabe said. “That’s where the nest is. And that’s where we’ll find Stego.”
“How can we sneak past the dinosaurs down there?” Laura asked.
“We’ll find a way,” Gabe insisted. “Don’t worry, Stego. We’re coming for you!”
Gabe looked confident. But Laura could tell that he was really worried about his Stegosaurus friend. The thing was, Stego wasn’t the only one in danger. In fact, Laura was pretty sure they were also in danger.
“I hope Dr. B. is coming for us,” Laura said. “And I really hope his time machine isn’t broken.”
“Well, it’s broken,” declared the doctor.
Dr. Bunsen wheeled out from underneath his time machine, covered in oil.
“Apparently, these unbreakable motor gears do, in fact, break.” He tossed the busted gears across the lab with a loud clatter.
“We’ll just need a new set of gears. It’s off to the store for me!”
The doctor grabbed his wallet and bounded out of the laboratory.
Chapter 6
Don’t Disturb the Dinos
* * *
“Remind me to bring supersize bug spray the next time we go on a Dr. B. adventure.” Cesar swatted at the Jurassic-size insects hovering around him. The friends were cautiously making their way across the overgrown valley.
“Careful, Cesar,” warned Laura. “We don’t know how prehistoric bugs will react. For all you know, they’ll try to eat you too.”
“I would leave them alone.” Cesar ducked an enormous moth-type creature. “But they won’t leave me alone!”
“They’ve never seen a human before,” teased Gabe. “Maybe they’re curious.”
Laura suddenly stopped. “I didn’t think about that,” she said slowly. “We’re not supposed to be here. So wouldn’t anything we do technically . . . ?”
“. . . alter the future?” Gabe finished for her just as Cesar whacked a flying insect on the tail. It buzzed away, dazed and angry.
“Cesar!” cried Gabe and Laura.
“What?” Cesar shrugged. “It’s one bug!”
“We can’t take any chances,”
Gabe said. “From now on, no more disturbing anything prehistoric.”
“You mean, ‘Don’t Disturb the Dinos’?” Cesar joked.
“Exactly,” said Gabe.
“Okay . . .” Laura shot Gabe a look. “So, we shouldn’t raid a Pterosaur’s nest, take back Stego, and bring him to live with a herd of full-size Stegosauruses?”
Gabe frowned. “That’s different. We came here to give Stego a new home. We can’t just leave him.”
“I’m not saying we should leave him,” said Laura, getting a little frustrated. “Just that we have to be careful. Anything we do could change the course of history. Including getting eaten by a dinosaur.”
Gabe was quiet for a moment. “I know,” he said finally. “But it’s my fault he’s in trouble. I’m the one who let him get hit by the growth ray. And I’m the one who didn’t protect him from the Pterosaur.”
Laura felt bad for being hard on Gabe. “It’s not your fault,” she said more calmly. “How could you have known what scientists didn’t even know?”
“Yeah,” added Cesar. “And we’re going to save him. Like you said, we’re the DATA Set. Danger is in our name.”
Gabe looked at his friends gratefully. “Thanks, guys. I’m glad we’re a team. Okay, so it’s settled. ‘Don’t Disturb the Dinos.’ Except for getting Stego to a herd of Stegosauruses to live with. But everything else is off-limits.”