Jurassic Kratts

Stampede

After informing Aviva and Koki as to their whereabouts, Martin, Chris, Jimmy Z, Alan, and the Murphy siblings continued their trek back to the Visitors Center. The sun was high as they left the relative safety of the jungle behind and reached more open country, where the grassy plains stretched as far as the eye can see. With the change in landscape and the absence of trees, Chris took to the sky to scout ahead, courtesy of his Peregrine Falcon form, while Martin guarded the rear, eyes darting from left to right, ever watchful for potential dangers on the ground. Further ahead of the Kratt in blue, Dr. Grant walked in the lead, guiding the troop through the field, map in hand, while JZ kept the children entertained, recalling stories from adventures past.
"Clear!"screeched the green avian every so often, swooping over the hikers' heads, earning chuckles from down below. This went on for an hour until Chris was circling above them, signaling the party to halt.
Dropping altitude, he landed gracefully before deactivating his CPS to join the others who were waiting expectantly for the news.
"What is it bro?"said Martin.
"It's not Wrecksy or the other meat-eaters, is it?"asked the Tortuga pilot, nervous at the possibility of another theropod encounter. Lex and Tim shuddered at the mention of the T.rex.
"Chris, report."stated the paleontologist firmly.
With a familiar twinkle in his eye, the Kratt in green spoke, "You guys are gonna love this. Just half a mile beyond the hill up ahead. C'mon!" With that, he took off in a bolt.
"Hey, Chris! Wait up, dude!"yelled Martin, following after his younger brother. It wasn't long before the rest of the group went in the direction the Kratt Brothers had taken.
  They soon caught up with the creature adventurers at the top of a green hill. Their eyes grew as wide as saucers as they beheld what was beyond the rise: a small herd of lumbering herbivorous dinosaurs, half a dozen or so, was peacefully grazing under the shade of a solitary ginkgo tree. Despite their tiny heads, their bodies were massive; the older members measuring thirty feet from nose to tail, and appeared to be as heavy as a bull elephant. But the features that stood out among these behemoths were the two rows of spinal plates along their broad backs and the four formidable spikes on their tails.
"Stegosaurus."whispered the creature adventurers in unison, completely in awe of these iconic dinosaurs.
"Stegosaurus stenops. North America, late Jurassic, herbivore."murmured Grant, addressing the younger audience.
"Wow.."Lex and Tim marveled.
"Groovy decoration they got there. What're they for?"asked Jimmy.
"Plates."answered the bone-digger. "They're called plates. And as to what they were for, Jimmy, no one knows."
  "By the looks of it, they're probably used for display, like the feathers on a peacock."responded Martin.
"Or like Schnozzle's nose; the males would probably use their plates to show how strong and healthy they are."added the Kratt in green.
"Schnozzle?"asked Alan with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, he's a male Proboscis monkey we met in Borneo." explained the Kratt in blue. The paleontologist nodded in understanding.
"What's that?"questioned the twelve-year old hacker, pointing to a figure emerging from the edge of the forest. As the men turned their heads in the direction Lex was pointing, their eyes widened, but not in a good way.
  As the figure slowly made its way out of the undergrowth, it revealed a long, crocodilelike snout attached to a massive body. In addition to its nasty teeth, the creature was armed with long, powerful arms, and three razor-sharp claws, the thumb claws curving into formidable meat hooks. Without doubt, this was a predator, and it was stalking the herd.
"A Baryonyx!"whispered Tim, crouching lower.
"A what now?"asked a frightened Jimmy. The paleontologist answered, replying, "Baryonyx. Thirty feet from nose to tail, England, mid Cretaceous. Carnivore, fish-eater."
"Wait, how do you know?"
"Crocodilelike snout, heavy hooklike claws, not to mention the first fossil remains contained a half digested fish in the dinosaur's stomach."
"It doesn't look like fish is on the menu today. Look!" The group looked to where Martin pointed, and the huge theropod leaped out of cover with a loud, guttural roar, charging straight for the Stegosaurs!
However, this loud and noisy approach alerted the herd of the carnivore's presence. The Stegosaurs quickly closed ranks, forming a circle of plates and spikes around the younger herd members, protecting them from the looming threat. The eldest member of the herd, likely the matriarch, stepped outside the phalanx to engage the Baryonyx in battle, stomping her feet, swinging her lethal tail spikes towards her adversary.
"A never before seen creature moment!"announced Martin, recording the action with his Creaturepod. "Two radically different species, from different time periods and from different continents, locked in combat!"added the Kratt in green, watching, along with everyone else, as the two dinosaurs clashed, the Baryonyx with her teeth and talons, and the alpha Stegosaurus with her macelike tail.
"Barbara keeps showing off her side to the Baryonyx, she's using her plates as a massive billboard that says: 'Back off! I'm bigger than you, and I have spikes on my tail, and I will use them!'"heralded Martin, deepening his voice at the last part, earning giggles from the children.
"Barbara? Of all names, you pick Barbara?"questioned Chris with a raised eyebrow.
"What? Her tail's full of barbs. Barbara."
"Fascinating."noted the paleontologist. "She's using her plates to make herself look bigger and more dangerous than she really is. That certainly rules out the theory that they used them for thermal regulation."
"But the Baryonyx isn't buying it."said the Kratt in blue, noticing that the carnivore refused to yield, but continued circling her quarry, waiting for an opening. Suddenly, with a blaring shriek, the croc-snouted theropod charged head on, slashing the Stegosaurus' flank with sharp talons. Barbara bellowed in pain as blood flowed freely from the wound, before swinging her tail towards her attacker. However, the Baryonyx ducked, narrowly missing the lethal swing of her foe's tail.
"Swing and a miss!"exclaimed the Tortuga pilot.
"Ouch! Those claws cut as deeply as a katana sword. And that's just what I'm gonna call her–Katana!"commented Martin, earning a chuckle from Tim and an eye roll from Chris before another roar brought his attention back to the duel.
"And it looks like Katana's going in for a jaw bite–right for Barbara's neck! Barbara's in trouble now!"
"But it doesn't look like it's doing much damage,"replied Alan." The teeth of Baryonyx were designed to grip prey, not exactly for tearing like most other theropods."
The Stegosaurus seemed to sense this, so she mustered all her strength to shake off Katana's jaws. Once the carnivore loosened her grip, Barbara took advantage of the opportunity to break free, using her weight to push her attacker back, before delivering a swift blow to her enemy's side, knocking Katana off her feet.
"Ooh! That's gotta hurt."remarked Chris, wincing.
"Is she dead?"asked Lex, noticing the Baryonyx wasn't moving. But after half a minute, Katana slowly rose to her feet, shaking her croc-like head to regain focus.
"Nope. Just had the wind knocked out of her."replied Martin, still recording as the theropod began to slowly back away from the victorious Stegosaurus, who was displaying her plates and swinging her tail, as though daring the predator for a rematch. Soon, Katana the Baryonyx turned tail back for the jungle, leaving Barbara and her herd in peace.
"Looks like she's gonna look for breakfast elsewhere."said the Kratt in green before glancing at the sun above them. "And it looks like we should get moving if we wanna be at the Visitors Center by noon." Reactivating his Falcon suit, he took off , gaining more elevation with each wing beat before he was gliding right over the ginkgo tree where the Stegosaurs grazed. "Let's fly!"
  The rest of the party took that as their cue to continue moving, passing the herd as they resumed their business of eating. "It is safe to say that the debate over the function of a Stegosaurus' plates is now academic."remarked the paleontologist as he resumed his lead, Jimmy and the kids not far behind him, and Martin taking up the rear. "Don't mind us, Barbara. We're just passing through."
****One Hour Later...****
"How..much..further?"asked JZ, panting with each step he took.
"I'm tired."whined Tim, feeling the pangs of exhaustion.
"And hungry."added his sister.
"Just hang in there, guys. According to Chris, we're almost there."
  "The Visitors Center should be just about a mile beyond that rise. If we keep–" but Alan was cut off as he looked skywards, noticing that the green falcon was now circling above them, signaling the troop to stop.
"We need to get out of here!"warned Chris, still circling over their heads, but close enough to be heard.
"What's wrong, bro? Seen a predator?"
"No, a large herd of dinos three quarters of a mile away, and closing fast!"
"Description? What did they look like?"asked the bone-digger.
"Twenty feet long, nine, ten feet tall, long legs, and an ostrichlike build."
"Ostrichlike build?"pondered the Kratt in blue. " I know who this is, I just can't place the name. It was something like Galli– galli-uh–"
"Gallimimus?"offered Tim.
"Thanks, Timmy."
"Galli-who now?"questioned a confused Jimmy.
"Gallimimus,"answered Alan. "Mongolia, late Cretaceous. Omnivore, distinct ostrichlike shape, one of the fastest–"
Before long, shrill shrieks could be heard, followed by dozens of thundering feet just around the next bend before the herd came into view. They were as Chris made them out to be; swift and graceful, not unlike a flock of ostriches on the African plains.
"Look at the wheeling– the uniform direction change!"said Grant, mesmerized by the spectacle. "Just like a flock of birds evading a predator!"added the Kratt in blue, just as fascinated.
"I uhh hate to burst your bubble," interrupted the pilot, " but they're flocking this way!" With that, and a girlish scream, he turned and ran in the opposite direction of the stampede, the kids following suit. The paleontologist and the creature adventurer were brought out of their trance by a raptorial screech, followed by Chris' voice which said, "Run you fools!"
  Without another moment's delay, the pair ran like hell in the direction the others had taken just as the Gallimimus herd came thundering at their heels. However, Martin's foot stumbled upon a stone in his path. Just as the Kratt in blue expected to crash head first on the ground at the mercy of dozens of stampeding feet, instead –"Gotcha bro!" he felt himself being lifted by a pair of talons on his backpack, and looking to his sides, saw the massive wings of Chris gliding over the panicked herd.
  "Thanks for the save!"
Utilizing their power of flight, the two creature adventurers met up with the rest of the group behind a fallen tree at the edge of the forest, where they all crouched down to avoid the clawed feet leaping overhead, sending dirt and debris flying. The entire herd eventually passed, prompting them to peer over their wooden fortress.
"Something was chasing them."said Martin, stating the obvious.
"But what?" Jimmy soon got his answer as a familiar, thunderous roar was heard somewhere within the trees ahead, making everyone's blood run cold. Tyrannosaurus Wrecksy was on the prowl.
Dr. Grant and the Kratts scanned the undergrowth for any sign of the T.rex, until the predatory dinosaur erupted out of the tree line, scattering the Gallimimus herd, throwing them into disarray, causing the swift omnivores to run in all directions. The whole party bore witness to Wrecksy's ferocity as she kicked into overdrive, running down a straggling Gallimimus and sinking her teeth into the animal's flanks. The Gallimimus' agonized cries were cut short as the Tyrannosaurus shook her quarry violently, pulling out a massive chunk of flesh in the process. The ostrichlike dinosaur never stood a chance.
  The paleontologist, creature adventurers and the Dino-fanatic half rose to their feet, staring in wonder as Wrecksy devoured her prey.
  "I wanna go now."whispered a horrified Lex.
"I second that!"added Jimmy, equally frightened, if not more so. But their pleas fell on deaf ears.
"Just look at how it eats!"said Alan.
  "Please!"
"Bet you'll never look at birds the same way again." Grant remarked.
"She's tearing away massive chunks of flesh and bone before swallowing them whole!"noted Martin.
"You know Martin, it's estimated that a T.rex could rip away five hundred pounds of flesh in a single bite, and those jaws can evert over eight thousand pounds per square inch!"
"Eight thousand—that's even more bite force than a Saltwater croc's, which is only more than three thousand!"exclaimed the green avian, wide eyed.
"And their bite is the strongest in the Animal Kingdom!"added the Kratt in blue, just as amazed. "That explains how she was able to demolish a car with little effort."
  Wrecksy paused in the middle of her meal and blared a loud, unearthly roar. In their excitement, neither the bone-digger nor the creature adventurers had realized that they were directly upwind of the tyrannosaur's keen nose.
"Let's go!"whispered JZ. Upon realizing their position, the three men exchanged sheepish looks before nodding in agreement. "Fun's over."murmured Martin.
"Okay. Keep low and back away slowly."instructed the Kratt in falcon form. "That roar was only a warning." That being said, the troop withdrew slowly away from the feasting T.rex, all except Tim who stayed behind. "Look at all its blood!"
At least until he was pulled away from the scene by the Kratt in blue..