Dinosaur Armageddon Vol. 1: Vengeful Promise

Chapter 18

Vincent and I walked through the forest, approaching the river. It was hot, but the heat wasn't too extreme. I could hear the buzzing of blood-sucking insects in my ears every now and a again, as well as the chirping of birds, the rattling of a cicada, and dinosaurs roaring in the distance. It had been two day since we all met and decided to locate the Coelophysis nest and destroy it. It was Hailey and Walter who went out first the day before, now it was our turn.

You could guess that we hadn't had much luck finding it. One might think that finding the stomping grounds of a huge group of carnivorous dinosaurs, but this particular search has proven to be quite a challenge for us. However, Vinny had a theory: with so many dinosaurs living together in one place, food was an absolute must have. All the more reason to have a reliable and convenient water source. Where there is water, there is prey.

That's why we were heading towards the Ocmulgee River, right then and there. If Vinny's theory is correct, if we followed the river, it would lead us straight into their territory. And the sooner we find their territory, the sooner we get rid of them, the better off we'll be.

"I think we are almost at the river now," Vinny said, stepping over a fallen tree trunk. "If we keep heading in this direction, we should be there soon."

I looked at him and nodded. "I remember," I replied. "I've been around here before. This is where the Allosaurus attacked me a while back."

"I would consider it dumb luck you survived. Allosaurus are aggressive and relentless hunters, tackling dangerous animals most other predators would pay good attention to avoid. If it had not been for Hailey's shuriken bomb, you'd be dead."

"And I am grateful for that."

A shrill cry rang out, making me flinch and look back swiftly. The sound came out of nowhere and it put me on alert. I had the holster of my Glock tightly in my hand, ready to pull it out when it is needed. I heard fluttering, like the sound of tiny wings beating rapidly.

Then, from the trees, a trio of creatures zoomed. They looked a lot like bats with their small size and wings, except their feathery down was blue and emerald green with pale cream bellies. I could tell just by looking at them that I could hold one in my hand with room to spare. Their heads kind of reminded me of the heads of piranhas; they were small and had short, blunt, beaked snouts full of tiny teeth. Their bright orange eyes were absolutely huge.

Pterosaurs, I thought.

As the tiny flying reptiles zipped past us, I heard Vinny laugh. I turned and gazed at him. "Relax, Toby. It was only a bunch of Anurognathus. Totally harmless unless you're an insect."

"Anurognathus," I said, letting my gun go. I had a feeling I heard the name before, but I couldn't place it. So, I reached into my pocket, took my phone out, opened the Dinopedia, and found the entry.

Anurognathus

(ANN-YOUR-OG-NAH-THUS)

Meaning "Without tail and jaw"

Insectivore

Late Jurassic

One of the smallest pterosaurs--winged reptiles closely related to dinosaurs--Anurognathus is the size of a swallow. These tiny reptiles feed on small insects, sometimes catching them while riding on the backs of large dinosaurs, riding them of any pests.

"A kind of tiny pterosaur from the Jurassic," I said out loud, stuffing my phone in my pocket. "I remember now. My uncle showed me a fossil of one when he came back from Germany."