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Alicea (47 hours after)

I've met various carnivorous dinosaurs, some which were small, some that were large, who've told me about surviving deserts. Some would say that, it was a majestic area that opened up your mind, yet tested your skills as a carnivore. Some would say that it's a hot, dying world outside the forest that makes you feel fearfully isolated, or that it reflected the thoughts you created in your mind, and instincts are your only survival option in this battle of nature. But that was before it happened. To me, if I were to describe a desert, I would say 'a graveyard of death and despair'. 'A hideous world rejected by Earth itself'. How else could I describe something so.....bad in this case? With the sky turning dark, and the air dropping in temperature, the desert was a fiery hot, but freezing cold sand pit of doom, and as I trudged through the sinking feeling in between my toes, the signs of doubt began to clear up in my head. Signs of despair and worry. Being the largest carnivore in Asia wasn't enough to keep me alive if an asteroid took my brother and my home, as well as the thought of even having the slightest chance to find a food of some sort. Animals could like up to 30 or 50 days without food, but just water. Didn't seem like enough though. For me, it was 5 days. I remember gnawing on some bark a few hours back, sharpening my teeth, and believing that it was food, but the sour taste of green food spat out of my mouth into dead Earth. I couldn't keep track of the day. It was night forever. Waking up at night, sleeping at night, made no sense. Cold, wet, and solemnly dirty were the words I could pick up from my experiences. I glanced around at my surroundings. Sand flowed through the world like dead frozen waves of grain to its ending horizon. A few splayed out rocks sat silently still on the sand, some which curled into statues of nature, some with black stains of ash, and some, cracked by earthshakes into the formation of triangular caverns. There was a small little watering hole nearby that was on the edge of a handful of dead fallen trees, and hopefully it wasn't dirty like the ones I passed earlier on my walk. The fact that a hint of blue glowed from the pool made me feel awfully thirsty, and without hesitation as to what could be in there, I stomped myself over to its edge. Surely enough, I was a bit overwhelmed by the fact that the water was crystal clear and perfect, and in surprise, dove my large bony head into the drinkable liquid. A pure rush of energy soared through my veins as I drank the water, feeling finally rejuvenated by its taste on my tongue. I'm sure ¼ of the water vanished into my stomach in seconds, which was a lot to take in, but I was thirsty, so who cares. Suddenly, as I drank the thirst, quenching water, the ground thudded. My eyes went wide, and I stopped drinking to hear the sound once more. It wasn't me for sure when the next thump echoed through the ground and shook the liquid like a stone just dropped into the water and spread tiny waves out to the edges. More thumps happened, until it became shaking, and forced me to lift my head up. It was a living creature, that was certain, but until it showed it's face through the darkness of the night, I was worried. And when it did, my facial muscles changed from threatened, to surprise. Another Tarbosaurus. Male. Tall like my brother George, but stronger like a rock hard armor. He thumped his way to the watering hole, staring at me with beady sharp eyes and scenting nostrils. And from my scent to his, we both didn't know each other, or where we're from. He walked up, shaking the earth, rumbling in his throat, and stared sharp at me as he stumbled over to the watering hole. I backed up quietly, not showing any signs of threats, as he did the same, though our eyes locked for a while. Then, he finally dropped his head, sinking his jaws into the water, and began gulping it down. Magically out of nowhere, another carnivorous dinosaur approached, but this one looked rather different. A Tyrannosaurus! I thought, backing up a few more feet. The Male Tarbosaurus backed up a bit, allowing the other specie to drink up the rest. The T-Rex looked really injured. Blood slashes dug into his back and legs, and his tail was missing its point. His jaw looked a bit crooked, and arm was broken, hanging limply like a vine. I stared quietly as he drank in pain, and the other male Tarbosaurus looked over him like a shadow of hope. Then it turned to me. My eyes saw his own pupils shrink as he marched over with a small trot in his step, and panic flooded over me fast. He's going to attack! I wanted to scream, but I stood my ground, silently and patient. He growled silently, shaking the earth as he edged quickly to me, and my claws dug into the earth with worry. What do I do? I thought as he got closer, and closer, until his snout was a few feet from mine. A hot exhale puffed from his nostrils onto mine, and I could see the steam float up in the cool atmosphere. He cocked his head a bit, then backed up after inhaling my scent a bit more. And then he spoke.

"As I live a breathe," He whispered, "I thought I'd never see another one of my species ever again."

"Same," I squeaked, then adjusted, "(cough cough) Same for me too." I glanced back at the T-Rex approaching from behind in a limping motion.

"Is he okay?" I blurted out, unable to hold in my questions. The Tarbosaurus sighed, then looked back.

"He's really injured. I don't know if he's okay or not, but the pain's been killing him ever since I found him burned up on the beach."

"On the beach?" I repeated, seeing him struggle to walk, then stop, then repeat.

"Yeah," He muttered, then glanced at me, "I don't think we've been properly introduced yet. Name's Kai."

"A-Alicea," I stammered, dipping my bony head, "Nice to meet you." Finally, the T-Rex got to us, leaning on his good leg and squeezing his jaws shut in pain.

"You sure he's okay-"

"I'm fine," He growled, "just need to get back to my son."

"You have a son?" I asked again. He nodded and smiled.

"A beautiful carnivore, and the last son I have living," He wheezed, "He has beautiful eyes, a strong heart, a pure mind,.....he's everything to me."

"Sure sounds like it," I whispered sadly.

"I have to get back to him," He grunted, stumbling onto Kai. He held his ground, supporting the T-Rex.

"Not in the condition you're in Thunder," Kai stated, "You don't look well."

"Why are you caring for me Tarbosaurus?" He hissed, "I could manage on my own."

"On your own, you'd be dead." He responded, adjusting himself again with his foot, "And at this point, all of our lives need to be restored. So every life has a purpose now, even our prey." I looked at Kai, seeing some wisdom in his eyes, and though I felt doubtful for his 'every life has a purpose, including prey,' it was agreeable and true in a way. Though I'm not sure the T-Rex is buying it for now.

"Where do you live Thunder?" I wondered. The T-Rex groaned.

"On another island. A larger one."

"And you're son's name is?" The T-Rex looked up at me swallowing hard.

"Shadow."