MESOZOIC MAJESTY: TRATAYENIA PART I:

ONE

 
ARGENTINA 85 Million Years Ago

BAJO DE LA CARPA FORMATION:

A subtle breeze whistles through the trees, as the soon-to-be mother dreams below. For several weeks now Liwen has been attending to her nest. The male she mated with is long gone, having departed shortly after coitous. For the next three months her life will be dedicated to caring for her young.
Liwen is a Tratayenia, a large genus of Megaraptoran, who are the apex predators of this environment. If they survive to adulthood, her hatchlings could potentially reach eight meters in length, with a mass of two tons. Although they may one day rule the forests and floodplains, the tiny hatchlings will be vulnerable to every other hungry creature until they are at least three years old. Day and night they will remain by Liwen's side.
  She awakens, stands to her feet, then covers her eggs with a few nearby ferns. She defecates several times on the nest's perimeter. Her smell is usually enough deterrent for most egg thieves. Tonight she will hunt. As she is mesothermic, she must hunt frequently to sustain herself, and soon her chicks. She saunters through the gymnosperm forest almost silently. The pads on her feet conceal the sound of her footsteps. They are quite an asset to a two ton ambush predator.
  As she traverses across the forest, she can slightly feel the presence of other creatures. She picks up on a familiar scent. There is prey near. A few hundred meters away, a flock of elasmarians called Mahuidacursor, forage amongst the leaf litter, and low growing ferns. Their integument of down-like feathers keep them warm in the cool night. Like Liwen, these opportunistic herbivores can see in full color, as well as the ultraviolet spectrum. The lookout notices a foreboding hue. The signal must be given. The sentry begins chirping panickedly, alerting the dozen other elasmarians with him. She must try now, or continue searching.
  Liwen rapidly accelerates. Although her size would not indicate so, she is quite fleet on her feet. Her massive stride covers much more ground than the Mahuidacursor, and this is to her advantage. She reaches out with her massive hands, clutching a juvenile, who writhes and squirms in futile attempts for freedom. She buries her talons into the ornithopod, biting and tearing at it, as it bleeds out. In a matter of seconds the elasmarian is dead, and blood and bits of bone cover the undergrowth. The other Mahuidacursor manage to escape from their predator. She is deadly, but she is no monster. She takes only what is necessary. She takes a few more bloody bites, then drops the carcass, and departs en route to her nest.
Three weeks later-
   Under the scorching sun of high noon, the eggs begin to shake and crack. The time for hatching has come, and Liwen waits patiently to meet her children. This clutch is her first of many that she will have. Beside the nest is the carcass of a Velocisaurus. The noasaurine will make a good first meal for the hatchlings. The protection of the shell is broken, and a new megaraptoran enters the world. It is a male, small and spotted in black over his cerulean colored feathers. She nuzzles him, as he weakly hobbles about. This hatchling we shall call Quidel. Next comes Nahuel, another male, slightly larger than his elder brother. Another three eggs produce Moroti who is completely white in coloration, save for her icy blue eyes, Kauan piebald between white and cerulean, and Eirete with her flecks of gold feathers and green eyes.
Instinctively, Liwen regurgitates a bit of the Velocisaurus into the nest's center. The hatchlings nibble at the flesh, as their mother lays down to rest. The hatchling Tratayenia process their Cretaceous world, as their mother sleeps. Insects dart through the air, as enantiornithine birds flap by. Lizards, sphenodonts, and mammals creep, and scurry about the forest as rays of light penetrate the closed canopy. These forests, as well as the floodplains beyond are full of wonder, though terrors also lurk. For now, the youngsters are content playing with one another. They are not yet aware of the world they have been born into.
 
Three Days Later:

The hatchlings are now stable in walking and running. They are accompanying their mother on a journey to the river. Liwen keeps her chicks close, a moment they are out of her sight could be the difference between life and death. As the forest gives way to the fluvial plains, Liwen spots a herd of Inawentu. These twelve meter titanosaurs are feeding upon low growing plants. The behemoths are joined by two meter parankylosaurs. Feeding amongst Inawentu offers these armored dinosaurs an extra layer of protection.
At the water's edge, a pair of Alvarezsaurus, extremely bird-like theropods, lounge upon a rock. These carmine colored coelurosaurs are covered in complex feathers. One of the white-headed Alvarezsaurus yawns, which is followed by a repeated behavior in the other. Dragonflies zoom over the water's surface, while a pair of Abelisaurids, called Viavenator, wade through the shallows.
  Liwen gives the titanosaurs a wide berth, then leads her hatchlings down to the river. The Alvarezsaurus notice the megaraptoran, yet her presence does not garner a strong reaction. Her body language communicates that she is not currently hunting. Liwen lowers her snout to the water, with her chicks imitating her. She scoops up a bit of water, then tilts her head back to force the water down her throat. Soon, life will change drastically for both Liwen and her young. Just as times can be bountiful and full of plenty, the opposite can just as easily push species to the brink.