Caught in the Cretaceous

Chapter 16: Emergency Exit

After a day of much needed rest the. new goes back to work with renewed vigor. Apollo immediately goes to check on their supplies. After all, it isn't as easy for them to get supplies here. He is suddenly concerned when he realizes they need more water. 

He immediately goes to the main room to break the news. When he gets there he sees both of the adults he was looking for, much to his relief. "We have a problem." 

Artemis and Alex stop what they're doing and look at him. Confident he now has their attention, he continues. "We're almost out of drinking water. Someone is going to have to g on a collection run. Outside the fence." 

There's the elephant in the room everyone has been working on. No one has dared mention going outside the fence since they put it up. They all felt more secure now that they had a physical barrier between them and everything out there. But if they wanted to continue to eat and drink, they had to journey past the fence to get it. 

After a long tense silence Alex finally acknowledges his words. "Okay. I'll go with you. Maybe we can catch some fish too." 

Apollo is perplexed for a moment. "That's it? I was expecting an argument or something." 

Alex shakes his head. "No argument. We knew this was coming sooner or later." He steps away from his wife. "I'll go get my things and meet you outside." 

Apollo watches a little stunned as his brother-in-law leaves the room. When his sister snaps her fingers in front of his face he snaps out of his daze. Without being told he leaves the room as well. He already had a bag packed in the infirmary for when he would have to go outside the fence. he grabs his bag and goes to meet Alex outside. He is feeling more relaxed now that he isn't taking this trip alone. It could be like old times with Alex. Like when they used to go hiking together in college. 

Alex is waiting for him when he gets outside. They share a friendly nod before striking out on their journey. They spend the trek making light conversation. Reminiscing on old times. It is a pleasant distraction from the knowledge of how dangerous the environment around them is. Almost miraculously, they make it to the watering hole without any incident. The two men know bette than to take that for granted. So they don't relax, not entirely. 

They don't waste a moment. Both of them getting right to work to fill the canteens with fresh water. By the time they are finished with that there are very few animals in the area. They think it is safe to attempt to fish, but they decide to move down the connecting river a little to do so. 

Alex ties one of his knives to a fallen branch. Apollo keeps an eye on the few animals in sight while Alex gets to work spear fishing. he manages to get two fish, which he was storming in a bag tied to his gear, when a loud rustling comes from the nearest trees. Alex is unbothered by the sudden noise. if there is an issue he is confident Apollo will let him know. 

Apollo on the other hand grows very concerned. he knows that it would have to be a creature of great size to be making such a disturbance. Along with that, he knows that even large and bulky animals can move in a way that virtually unnoticeable. So if this animal is making such a racket, it doesn't care what could possibly be around to hear it. And that could be bad. This creature is clearly very comfortable in this area. It is unafraid of predators and is confident enough in it's hunting ability that it doesn't mind scaring away the nearby prey. 

The medic's fears are confirmed moments after Alex lands his third catch. A large bulky animal barrels from the nearby trees. it has brownish scaly skin that is peppered with healed and healing scars. It's beady eyes sit in its large head taking in everything about its surrounding. Its back legs are large and muscular, obviously very powerful. Its forelimbs are tiny, especially compared to the rest of its body. Its strong, thick tail stretches out behind it like a counter balance to its bulky body. This can only be one animal. Probably the most famous of all the dinosaurs. Tyrannosaurus rex.