Second Meeting
#19 of Out of the Shadows: AnthroLover's Version
Part 19 is now avaible.
Rex slumped against the side of the rocky structure in the middle of the valley. It was the meeting place. Rex moaned in pain and lifted his arm to himself. He slowly licked the gash that now snaked deep inside his arm. Pain seered all over his body. "Man, I should've just sit out of the fight..." He grumbled to himself. He was in no position to fight. He'd have to let his wounds heal.
Petrie and Pterano perched themselves nearby. They escaped without too much injury. Pterano had trouble flying now because there was a little rip in his wing membrane. Petrie had a little scratch on his chest, but was otherwise fine. Next to them stood Ducky. She had a few cuts and scrapes, but nothing that would prove to be fatal. Spike, however, lost one of his spikes and a few of his plates were now busted. Littlefoot now adorned a cut very similar to what the lone dinosaur has, only on the opposite eye. Ali only had a single deep gash in her left leg, though.
Rex slightly glared at her, and said, "Lucky."
Ali sighed. "It's not my fault I'm better at fighting than you are, Rex." She smiled softly.
He rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. But still, you lucky." He winced as pain entered his mind once again. Ali tilted her head and walked over.
"Need some help?"
"No! I'm fine!" Rex snapped.
"Okay, suit yourself."
Littlefoot had called a meeting, but unlike the last meeting, this meeting will only consist of a smaller group of dinosaurs. In the meeting, there was himself, Rex, Petrie, Pterano, Ali, Tria, Ducky, Spike, Thicknose, Dina, Dana, Hyp, Nod, and Mutt. There was also Charlie and Serena, the rainbow faces that Littlefoot met when he was little. Everyone in the valley knew that they held a few magical tricks, and Littlefoot believed that they would be an important asset. Hyp was the smallest, of course, but his strong-willed attitude made him a tough opponent, and thanks to his dad's training, he could take on even the largest of sharpteeth. Mutt was still a bit absent minded, but his strong body was perfect for battle. Nod didn't look different except he was larger, and his armored back made him difficult to beat.
Littlefoot walked in front of the small group of dinosaurs. He wanted to keep it small so that it would be easier to decide on what they should do. He had sent Petrie to tell everyone in the valley of what was going on. Petrie had also told the ones who couldn't come to the meeting that he would update things for them as soon as he could. Littlefoot was not sure if they should head towards Fortress Valley or not. And if they decide to go, they'd have to bring a lot more dinosaurs with them.
"I suppose some of you are wondering why you were called here today." He scanned the group. None of them seemed to indicate an answer. They remained looking emotionless as they waited politely for Littlefoot to continue. An angry scowl from Hyp made Littlefoot continue his speech. "Today we were just attacked by a pack of sharpteeth." A murmur developed among those who did not witness the fight. "It seems we were wrong about the sharptooth kind."
Nod spoke up. "What do you mean? What were we wrong about them?"
Thicknose had to agree. The old dinosaur took a step forward. "They aren't very bright, or..."
Littlefoot shook his head. "That was a grave mistake we leaf-eaters have all made. We have underestimated the sharpteeth." The group started again with its nervous chatter. Hyp decided to say something this time around.
"So how do you know we underestimated them?"
"It seems the sharpteeth have a valley of their own, somewhere nearby." Littlefoot waited for the clamor to die down before he continued. "It is guarded heavily, but there is a way in. We just have to find it."
Dina took a step forward. "You mean we have to go to this...sharptooth-infested valley?" Dina and Dana did have their brow horns, but they were shorter than what Cera's was.
Littlefoot shook his head. "We are not sure. But we do know this: there is a massive army of sharpteeth living in that valley, and if what that one sharptooth said was true, then the valley is a haven for sharpteeth but horrid for leaf-eaters. They will capture, torture, butcher, and eat any leaf-eater, especially the kids." There was a collective gasp. "The place is known as Fortress Valley."
Pterano cleared his throat. "Might I suggest a stealthy act? Maybe sneak into the valley and discover their weaknesses?"
"That would be a good idea, Pterano, except we don't know the entrance of the valley, and from what Chomper told us, it's heavily guarded at the entrance." He then looked at the group. "If we were to sneak into the valley the same way that Chomper does, then we'd be in big trouble. They have two sharpteeth at that entrance." He closed his eyes. "We'd have to find another way."
Pterano thought for a moment. "Perhaps Petrie and I could flew through the area and see if we can find a place you can climb up."
Petrie said, "But what about flying sharpteeth?"
Pterano snapped his finger. "Oh darn!"
"Wait! Those flying sharpteeth who attacked you, I believe they sleep during the night like the rest of us." Thicknose smiled a bit slyly. "As long as you are quiet, you could sneak past them."
Pterano smiled. "That sounds good. What do you think, nephew?"
Petrie thought about it. He finally nodded. "Me thinks it good idea. Might just work."
Tria decided to speak this time. "It's still very dangerous. Even if you manage to locate a path to take, like you said, Littlefoot, there are hundreds of sharpteeth in that valley. Wouldn't we have to take hundreds of dinosaurs with us as well?"
The longneck nodded. "Yes. We'd probably have to take nearly all the dinosaurs in this valley. Maybe even more. Those sharpteeth are well trained and will be even tougher than normal sharpteeth."
The female threehorn narrowed her eyes. "Then shouldn't we just stay here then?"
"No. If we do, they'll invade this valley and we'll be completely ill prepared for battle."
"I've got my horns!"
Littlefoot nodded once. "Yes, you do. But how well can you use them if you're sleeping?"
Tria cocked a brow. "What?"
"How do you know the sharpteeth won't come at night and kill you as you sleep?" Tria didn't answer. "We need to go into battle if we want to live. Of course, the other option is to go into the Valley of Mists."
Ali looked at him in horror. "What are you thinking!" She ran up to him. "You can't go there! It's too dangerous!"
Littlefoot gave her a sorrowful look. "I know, Ali, but Chomper doesn't know about that place, I hope. We could live there for a while until the threat goes away. But that's only a last resort."
"I say we go into Fortress Valley and kick all those sharpteeth butts!" Hyp shouted, fists clenched tightly. "I want to get them back for what they did to my dad!" A sharptooth strayed from the pack and killed Hyp's father.
"But shouldn't we think this through first?" Asked Dana.
"No! We must go to battle!" Shouted Nod, his eyes glaring and determined.
Back in Fortress Valley, a red sharptooth named Crimson was escorting Dil and Ichy to their den. They had came into the valley, harmed by a rock fall. Chomper had ordered them to be taken to a den where they could rest a few days and heal. He was surprised that they had survived. Now knowing about their incredible survival skills, he wanted them to be part of the invasion.
Suddenly he noticed that the sharpteeth he had sent into the valley before had returned. They all had injuries on them, but they proudly showed no signs of pain. They stood as straight as they could, in soldier style. Chomper approached the group, and paced back and forth in front of them.
"Well? What's the news?" He asked coolly.
One of the sharpteeth replied, "Message delivered, sir!"
Chomper smiled. "And how did they take it?"
"The one called Littlefoot is deciding whether or not to invade Fortress Valley, sir!"
This caught Chomper's attention. Was Littlefoot really going to risk coming here? The thought made him laugh coldly. They must be crazy! The walls are heavily guarded, not just the entrance. They had night watchers as well. They would be discovered for sure! Their little invasion would be all a waste. But then Chomper got an idea. What if they acted like they didn't know there was an invasion coming?
"I got an idea..." He purred threateningly. "Tell all the defenders to act off guard. Tell them to stay hidden in the shadows." He smiled. "I have a feeling the group will be coming at night."
"But which night, sir?"
"That's a good question..." He let out a loud roar, calling to a sharptooth flyer who zoomed down. As it perched on a nearby branch, Chomper addressed him, "Sierra, I want you to fly over to the Great Valley and see when those leaf-eaters plan on coming over here."
Sierra giggled evilly. "I can't wait to get my claws on Pterano... I can't believe I ever took orders from him!"
"Now now," the horned sharptooth interrupted, "don't let yourself be seen. Remember, you're a spy, not an attacker, in this situation."
The flyer growled. "Fine..." He took off towards the Great Valley.
Chomper smiled evilly as Sierra took off towards the valley. He knew it was close to battle. "Soon, Littlefoot's blood will seep through my claws..." He had no idea why he was now focused on Littlefoot. But he figured it was because he was the leader, and if he took down the leader, the rest will fall.
He dismissed the sharptooth pack, and he walked over to his den. As he stared at the sharptooth-like waterfall, he smiled hideously. "Soon, Littlefoot. Soon..."
In this moment no one could see, but a ghostly picture appeared behind Chomper, it was a great sharptooth, and had a very sorrowful look. It spoke with a sad yet sweet voice that only Chomper could barely hear. "Chomper, the path you're going is too dangerous. Please, turn back now, or you may lose your real family and yourself. Turn back now before you hurt yourself more that you have already done." and so vanished.
Chomper's eyes widened as he tough he had heard a familiar voice speaking to him. He turned around and saw no one."Hello?" he had no answer so he quickly dismissed it as the wind. What did this voice meant when said he would lose his real family? And that he was hurting himself?
Sierra keep the grin while he leaved the valley, but as soon as he was out of sight he let it drop. Chomper was a big fat idiot. He tought that he knew everything, but he was wrong, and Sierra was the proof.
Sierra didn't understand why he had to follow his orders. He could kill Chomper himself if they let him, but instead he was following him.
"Just wait Chomper." He said to no one in particular "I'll make you swallow all your stupid words, along with your teeth and horns after I rip then all out."