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SotF Chap 3 Part 2
By Mr Goodbytes
Chapter 3 part 2: Dragon
“What’s a Sucho whatever,” Katie asked.
No one answered. They were all staring out the large window. A large dinosaur lumbered slowly toward the compound. Just the sight of the beast terrified Katie. Rows of pointed teeth glistened in the sun as the animal opened its crocodilian jaws. Its long arms flexed as it swaggered along. A small red fin ran along the creatures back. It was like something from a nightmare. The Suchomimus continued along, paying no attention to the little humans behind the glass. Katie relaxed a little. It didn’t seem interested at all. She wondered why the others were still so tense. As the beast drew closer, she noticed small cuts running down the animal’s body. A glint of light caught her eye. There was a large piece of glass stabbed into the dinosaur’s side. The shard was way too large to have come from a normal window. This animal had been behind a glass barrier, but why? None of the other species had been. Before she could ask, three men ran forward. They all carried automatic rifles, and they were moving in for attack. The dinosaur saw them, but it paid very little attention. It wasn’t hungry. The Suchomimus simply walked into the shade of nearby trees, cooling off in the shadows.
“What the heck are those idiots doing,” Katie asked, “Are they nuts?”
“They’re just carrying out my orders,” Buckley said.
“Call them back in,” Dodgson said, “They’re too close.”
“Yeah. They must not realize what that is.”
Buckley turned on his radio, but it was too late. One of the men began firing. The Suchomimus roared. Its nap had just been rudely interrupted. A scream filled the air as the Suchomimus tore into the closest man. The others quickly turned away and began running. They were just out of the Sucho’s reach.
“Quick,” Dodgson yelled, “Open the doors!”
Russell sprinted to the glass doors, reaching them at the same time as the two men. However, before he could open them, the Suchomimus reared back. A jet of steaming liquid sprayed from a gland on the animal’s lower jaw. The three men screamed as boiling hot chemicals covered their bodies. Russell watched in horror as their skin blistered and peeled. More of the liquid splattered on the glass. The men were dead seconds later, their flesh still steaming. Russell was so caught up in the horror that he failed to see the dinosaur charging towards him. The Suchomimus rammed through the glass, tearing Dustin Russell from the floor. Blood splattered the area as the others ran to the rear of the compound.
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Alan, Ian, Todd, and Hank had finally reached the hotel the night before. Alan’s immediate reaction was to call Ellie. He realized however, that she would want to rush down to see him, but it was now much too dangerous for that. He knew that the animals would soon learn of their freedom. Ian had tried to contact the Costa Rican military, but was only laughed. No one would even believe that he was Ian Malcolm, much less that there were dinosaurs on the mainland. There was nothing they could do. Their only choice was to take the next flight back to the states.
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The Suchomimus continued to ram the building. It screeched loudly, trying to squeeze its massive body into the small control room. Boiling hot spray splashed on most of the equipment. Stream after stream flowed from the large glands on the animal’s lower jaw. From a room in the far end of the control building, the humans listened to the sounds of destruction. Katie sat in horror and shock. She couldn’t even think about what she had seen. It was just too sickening. Eventually though, curiosity got the better of her. Pushing the visuals to the back of her mind, she asked her question.
“What the hell was that?”
“That, my dear, was a Suchomimus. A living Dragon,” Buckley replied.
“What was that spray, some sort of acid?”
“In a way,” Buckley explained, “Have you ever heard of a Bombardier Beetle?”
“No, the only beetles I like are singers.”
“Well, as with the beetle, The Sucho has special reservoirs which produce hydrogen peroxide and hydroquinones. These chemicals are released to a second pair of thick-walled reservoirs called the combustion chambers where the chemicals are then mixed with enzymes, releasing heat, p-quinones, and water, at the same time accumulating pressure. The result is the explosive spray coming out of a pair of openings at the tip of the animals jaw. It’s pretty close to the fire breath which dragons were thought to have possessed.”
“Very informative,” Dodgson said, “You learn something new every day. Now, can we please cut the chatter and get out of here?”
Suddenly, the Suchomimus penetrated the control room. It tore half of the room apart as it entered. It gave a shriek of victory, and then started on the next wall. Halfway into his efforts, the beast yawned. As if deciding the little creatures were not worth the effort, the Sucho backed out of his excavation. Returning to his shady spot, the dragon lay down his head to finish his nap. Dodgson and the others fled from the building, running for the safety of the nearest bunker.
Chap 3 Part 3 Coming Soon!
10/7/2002 2:23:51 PM
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