revival - zach mitchell *2/3 of eradication trilogy*

Chapter 9: No Trace

I jumped out to survey the blocked path, the dead dinosaur upon us. Zach was tasked to stay behind, make sure all the passengers were calm and collected. The herbivore Stegosaurus laid on its side, the spikes pointing towards our transport. Did it die naturally or was it murdered?

I ran my hand over the stomach, feeling the rough texture of the herbivore beneath me when I felt a rough patch on the side of their neck. It was a large hole, blood seeping through it – marking their body and my hand. I stood up from my kneeling figure and looked around, hoping for any trace of who of what could've caused this wound.

No trace.

I walked back to the bus, immediately grabbing a tissue conveniently placed by the door. "Zach," I harshly whispered to the brunette who just arrived from his lap around the aisle. Harshly, I tugged Zach away from his place close to the group and pulled him out the door. "I don't think the island is safe."

"What do you mean?" He inquired, before I dragged him towards the animal and the wound.

"Zach," My tone seemed to be warning him, as I took his wrist and guided him to the crease between his head and his neck. "Feel this."

His facial expression changed, from annoyance and confusion to this scared look – a look that he had when we ran away from a creature five years back, in the exact same island. "What could've made this?"

"Unless someone created a new dinosaur, I'm not fully sure." The mark made wasn't like the other dinosaurs I remember. "Now, I know, we should've never made these creatures before. They were extinct in our time for a reason." He pulled away, now standing up so we were almost eye-to-eye.

"What reason is that?"

"That we can't co-exist," I started, "without enslaving the other or wanting to kill the other." Dinosaurs have been my life for ages, so admitting this was hard. Dinosaurs should've never been re-created – they should've been left...in the ground or museums. Humans can't co-exist due to the egos we have – we enslave everything that is different. In the 1950's and before, we enslaved the colored – now, we enslave the mentally handicap or sick in rehabs and asylums, animals in zoos and water parks, the childish adults as 'strange'. There will never be a day where humans see something different and accept it. How long did it take us to get LGBTQ+ rights or women's rights? Even with the gradual acceptance, people still hate on feminism and are misogynistic idiots – I mean, James Bond is a great example of it. With LGBTQ+; we still have the Baptist Church and die hard Christians/Catholics.

Human race can never co-exist until we open our hearts, and our minds.

"Is there any way around this?" He scanned the area, looking through the tree filled area on the side of the path.

"Unless we drive over some trees..." I trailed off, resting my hands on my hips. "Maybe a smaller path? Or a way to drive slightly around it?"

"I mean, it won't hurt to try." Zach shrugged.

"Would you like me to drive?" I offered, "you've been driving for a while." He shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets as I tied my hair up into a ponytail and fixed my plaid over shirt by tying it over my belly button.

"I can drive if you didn't want to." He persisted.

"I feel bad." Honestly, I just felt more awkward sat next to Ian as he constantly compliments me, and tries to get in my pants...not just because of the compliments, but the way he keeps inviting me to his tent. "I'll drive."

"What about that Ian guy?" I rolled my eyes. "Moved on so quickly, huh?" He hissed, annoyed.

"No, he's my friend." I defended, "a pervy one at that. Just go take a seat. I'll drive. I'm just going to double check the area."

"I'll help." He grumbled, under his breath.

Something isn't right here.