Jurassic Kratts

Perilous Night

   Deep in the jungle, Alan, Chris, Jimmy Z, and the Murphy siblings felt themselves under the gaze of three figures prowling in the darkness before them, eyes glowing like green coals among the foliage. The jungle was silent, the only other sounds that could be heard were the silent whimpers of the Tortuga pilot and the terrified children, hiding in a stand of ferns behind the paleontologist and the creature adventurer, and the low, guttural growls of their stalkers, still concealed in the dense undergrowth ahead of the party.
After a moment of desperate silence, the foliage parted to reveal a massive, three-foot head with formidable, dagger-like teeth. As the carnivore slowly approached them, the paleontologist noted that although it was only half the size of Wrecksy, it was armed with three talons on each hand, no doubt useful for dispatching prey. If he was anyone other than Alan Grant, he would've missed the distinctive ridge on its back, which set this creature apart from most other theropods.
  "Umm Alan? Classification?"whispered the Kratt in green, eyes never leaving the predator as it circled the pair, apparently to satisfy its curiosity.
  "Metriacanthosaurus, carnivore, Europe, mid Jurassic."replied the paleontologist. "Twenty feet long, named for its long neural spines–" but he was cut off mid sentence as the creature adventurer pounced on him. "Watch out!"
  The Metriacanthosaur's jaws missed Grant's head by a hair's length.
  "That was too close."muttered the bone-digger, picking himself off the ground.
"Get behind me!"whispered Chris quite sharply, reaching for a particular disk and fur sample. "Sorry, guys. We're not on anyone's menu tonight. Activate Lion Power!"
  The carnivore was blinded by a bright flash of green. Once the glow subsided, the bewildered animal tilted its head in confusion, for where the man in green once stood, was now a strange, green animal, the likes of which it had never seen before. Now the foreign creature was crouched in a fighting stance, claws unsheathed, growling a warning.
  Soon, hunger won over caution, as the Metriacanthosaurus warbled a shrill call, summoning its comrades hiding in the undergrowth, before circling the green interloper who dared come between them and their meal.
  As the three Metriacanthosaurs surrounded the green lion and the paleontologist, Chris whispered, "No matter what happens, stay behind me." Alan nodded before the green cat added, "By the way, you may want to cover your ears." With that, the Kratt in lion form bellowed as loud of a roar as he could muster, sending leaves falling, startling the birds and  bats overhead, and briefly causing their assailants to freeze in surprise.
But they refused to yield. Suddenly, the lead predator snarled, charging straight for his intended target. But Chris was ready; as the Metriacanthosaur pounced, the green lion met the dinosaur in a mid air spring, and drove his claws home, directly into his attacker's face, sending the twenty-foot theropod crashing to the ground.
"I guess those sparring lessons with Anai Pumua Moto really would come in handy."remarked the Kratt in lion form as he landed on his feet. But as he looked to his fallen rival, temporarily disoriented by the blow, the creature adventurer noticed something peculiar: this animal sported brighter colored markings compared to the much duller shades of its companions, something Chris had seen many times before. This was a male Metriacanthosaurus.
But how? Weren't all the animals here female?
The green lion was startled out of his thoughts by a piercing shriek, and without further warning, felt himself being rammed from his right side by one of the dull colored females. As he was flat on his back, Chris had just enough time to raise his paws to protect his throat from the predator's snapping jaws. As suddenly as it began, the attack ceased.
The Kratt in lion form felt the theropod's weight leave him, and rising back in his feet, he saw the Metriacanthosaurus turn her attention to Dr. Grant, armed with nothing but a stout tree branch. The paleontologist swung his weapon, aiming for the marauder's face. Enraged by the blows, the dinosaur snapped her jaws, grabbing the branch in her teeth before wrenching it from Alan's grasp, disarming him. After tossing the branch away in the thicket, the predator slowly advanced towards her new quarry, forcing him against a large tree. Options limited, with his back against the trunk, Grant resigned to his fate, awaiting the killer blow...which didn't come. Only a shrill screech was heard, followed by a heavy thud.
Forcing an eye open, Alan looked to see his attacker lying on the ground, pinned down by the green lion. "Get out of here! Take Jimmy and the kids!"roared Chris over the struggling dinosaur. "I'll hold them off!" That being said, he seized the Metriacanthosaur's tail, spinning her around twice before flinging her against the other female charging towards him, sending both theropods crashing on the forest floor.
No sooner had the bone digger gathered the hidden trio when the male Metriacanthosaurus pounced before them, blocking their escape, growling menacingly. Glancing behind, Alan could see the females overwhelm Chris, simultaneously attacking the lion with their teeth and claws. The Kratt in lion form fought with all his strength, but the marauding predators were proving too much for him to handle alone. A shrill hiss and panicked screams brought the paleontologist's attention back to the male dinosaur, flashing his fangs, moving in for the kill. That was when the earth started to shake...
In that moment, the attack on Chris stopped as the female theropods backed off, heads looking in all directions. The creature adventurer took advantage of the opportunity and slowly rose back on his feet.
BOOM BOOM
The male Metriacanthosaurus ceased his deadly advance on his would be victims, bewildered by the sudden vibrations that seemed to be coming from all directions. The party reunited with the Kratt in green, hearts racing, frozen with fear, for unlike the Metriacanthosaurs, they knew full well what that sound meant. Wrecksy was back!
BOOM BOOM BOOM
The footsteps became louder. Soon enough great crashing and the tearing of foliage could be heard, as the T.rex tore through the undergrowth, thundering towards them!
In an attempt to frighten the intruder away, the Metriacanthosaurs hissed and uttered piercing roars in the general direction the noise came from. But instead, they were answered by a louder, more terrifying bellow, causing the three predators to flinch with fright. Behind the green lion, the group remained frozen, too petrified to move as the Tyrannosaurus rex came closer and closer.
The three theropods began to back away slowly as the foliage parted, revealing a monstrous head sporting fifty serrated, bone crushing teeth, cold eyes glaring down at them. The tyrannosaur crashed out of the gloom, uncovering a massive bulk twice the size of the cowering Metriacanthosaurs. The females shrieked in terror before taking off, abandoning their hunt. The male theropod, quite recklessly, hissed a warning, challenging the bigger carnivore before being seized by the T.rexs' open jaws.
The humans cringed, expecting to hear the crunching of bones as the Metriacanthosaurus screamed in fear, being shaken about in the tyrannosaur's mouth. But the bite never came.
Instead the massive predator threw the terrified Metriacanthosaur towards the edge of the moonlit clearing, where he crashed against a massive forest giant. Recovering from his fall, the male Metriacanthosaurus uttered a pitiful screech before retreating back into the jungle's darkness. As the smaller theropod scampered away, the Tyrannosaurus blared a loud, deafening roar before, much to the party's surprise, it yelled, "Don't ever mess with my friends or my brother again!"
Having had his eyes closed the entire time, Chris forced an eye open before both flew wide open in surprise. "Martin?"he managed to squeak. And indeed, it was the older Kratt brother, but in T.rex form. "Martin, you're alright!"
Soon enough, Chris' surprise turned into uncontainable joy as he deactivated from his lion form, before racing towards his older brother, embracing the massive snout tightly, as though afraid he might lose him again.
"I thought I lost you,"he whispered, unable to control the tears flooding his eyes.
"I almost lost you once. I was afraid I'd lose you. Permanently."replied Martin Rex, his voice thick with emotion, before adding, "Nobody messes with my little bro." With that he nudged the Kratt in green with his snout, before accidentally knocking him over, earning a slight wince of pain.
"Are you okay?"asked the Kratt in Rex form, genuinely concerned.
"I'm fine, bro. Just got hammered pretty hard by those dinos."replied Chris, clutching his pained ribs.
The rest of the group stood dumbfounded by the reunion before the Tortuga pilot strode up to the Kratt Brothers. "Hey Martinosaurus. How's it going?"Jimmy greeted rather nonchalantly.
"Besides having my tail kicked by an angry T.rex, doing great."replied Martin, chuckling at his new nickname. "It's good to see you're okay JZ," he added before brofisting the pilot with his rather shortened arms. At that moment, Grant approached the trio, Lex and Tim in tow.
"Good to see you're alright, Martin."said the paleontologist, glancing up at the T.rexs' head towering over them before adding, " And thank you for saving us. Again."
Lex nodded in agreement to the bone digger's words, while Tim ran up to Martin's feet, eaten up with excitement, practically hyperventilating, "Thank you so much, Mr. Kratt!"
  Martin Rex couldn't help but chuckle as he replied, "Anytime, Timmy. But please, just call me Martin, or as Jimmy says, 'Martinosaurus.'" This last statement earned chuckles from Jimmy Z and Chris.
"Is that a T.rex Power Suit? That's so awesome! How did that happen?"
The ten-year old was cut off by a blaring roar in the distance. The roar of the real T.rex patrolling her territory. Then a period of eerie calm.
  "I'll tell you all about it on our way back to the Visitors Center."said the blue Rex gently, before bending down to the level of the multitude, his stomach making contact with the earth. "All aboard the T.rex Express! First time riders, hang on tight!"added the older Kratt humorously, earning giggles from the younger members. Eventually the group took their places on the tyrannosaur's back, Chris sat in the lead, Jimmy just behind the Kratt in green, the children took up the middle, and lastly, the paleontologist took his place in the rear. Feeling that his passengers were secure and accounted for, Martin Rex slowly rose from the ground, and after asking directions from his brother perched on his head, he took off with an earth-shaking roar, thundering through the trail that would lead them home.