Two (Countdown Book 5)

Prologue

It was an early Sunday morning. The wind was whistling through my hair, and the sun was shining brightly on my face. The air smelt fresh, like cleanly cut grass and flowers. It was the unusual scent of a British Spring.

I was walking along a street in London, my eyes peeled for my possible target. Despite the beautiful weather, I was dressed in thick, heavy clothes and covered from head to toe in a variety of different weapons; my sword was over my back, a gun at my hip, a grenade attached to my belt, a knife strapped to my ankle. I was fit to start a small war.

Walking alongside me was my girlfriend, Mackenzie. She was dressed almost identically to me, but without the sword. Her long, wavy brown hair was tied back in a neat ponytail, that made her look older. However, I thought she looked better with her hair down. Like me, she was scanning the crowds, looking for something unusual.

That's when we heard the screaming.

People came runnning around the corner of the street, lifting children into their arms, screaming and panicking. Now, I know what you're thinking; that's pretty darn unusual.

Me and Mackenzie picked up the pace to a jog, heading for the street corner. I tapped my earpiece as I jogged, breathing in and out evenly as I'd been taught. It was supposed to help your stamina when running.

"How far away?" I asked into the earpiece. For a second, nothing but static came over the earpiece, and then a recognisable voice cut through.

"Um, about ten metres away." Jess said. "Be careful, it's a pretty big one."

"Okay." I said, and then we turned the street corner.

Looking back on it, I would wonder how we hadn't seen it before. It was far too big to miss, and far more abnormal than anything I'd seen in a long time, which was really saying something. I felt Mackenzie's hand grip my arm tightly as we looked up at the towering green figure above us.

"Um, Jess?" I asked, trying to keep the nervous quiver out of my voice.

"Yes, Eli, what's up?" Jess asked.

"Um... I hate to be a menace, but I think we're going to need back-up on this one." I said shakily. The creature roared, shaking the very ground beneath our feet, and Mackenzie's hand slid down my arm and into my own.

"What is it?" Jess asked worriedly. "What should I tell Wyatt?"

"Tell him that there's a dinosaur here." I said, breathing out through my teeth in fear. "Tell him that there's a T-Rex eating Hamleys."