The silhouette shifted constantly—the green of the grass, the brown of the trees, and the dappled patterns of sunlight flickered and vanished.
It was Carnotaurus Two!
The Indominus rex hadn't noticed she was being ambushed. Feeling the sharp pain in her neck, she couldn't help but let out a shrill shriek. She immediately raked at Carnotaurus Two with her long claws, leaving bloody gashes across its flank.
Realizing she couldn't inflict a deep enough wound to kill the hybrid instantly, Carnotaurus Two let go and vanished back into the treeline.
What's going on? Did all the other dinosaurs evolve without me?! How can I not bite through a single carnivore?!
The Indominus felt a few scratches on her neck; the skin was broken, but no blood flowed. Realizing the attacker intended to flee, she lunged in pursuit. But almost instantly, she felt a tearing sensation in her left hind leg.
By instinct, she slammed her foot against the ground, shaking off Carnotaurus One, who had rushed in to bite her from the shadows.
"Roar—!"
"Aunnng..."
Shaken off but undeterred, Carnotaurus One roared back in defiance. Infuriated by this blatant provocation, the Indominus prepared to return the roar, only to feel a stinging pain in her right hand.
Her roar cut off abruptly. She turned to see Carnotaurus Two tearing at her arm, but as she moved to snap at the attacker, she felt the skin on her hind leg being ripped open again.
She realized the gravity of the situation. She could no longer treat these creatures with the same dismissive cruelty she showed the herbivores.
She twisted her body violently. The two Carnotaurus were dizzy from the force of the movement, but they refused to let go.
Why! Why is my snout so short!
That was the thought shared by both "Bulls." They couldn't get a wide enough gape to tear off large chunks of flesh; they could only hang on with grim determination.
Suddenly, the Indominus dropped her weight, bracing herself with her hands.
Carnotaurus Two's tiny, vestigial forelimbs were useless for stability. The sudden drop sent her crashing to the ground, forcing her to release the hybrid's snout.
The Indominus spun, kicking out with a hind leg to shove Carnotaurus One away. Leveraging her long arms, she pushed herself back up and lunged, pinning Carnotaurus One firmly to the earth.
Carnotaurus Two knew that if One died, she would stand no chance alone. Ignoring her pounding head, she rolled to her feet and, despite her swaying balance, delivered the dirtiest blow possible.
She struck the hybrid right in the [Censored]!
Even though the Indominus was designed with high-density defense across her entire body, this remained her most vulnerable spot.
"Aunnng—!!!"
This time, the hybrid let out a piercing, high-pitched scream.
Knowing she had succeeded, Carnotaurus Two didn't hesitate. She bolted back into the forest to hide.
"Roar—!"
The Indominus shrieked at the retreating Carnotaurus Two, momentarily loosening her grip on the pinned Carnotaurus One. In that life-or-death moment, One erupted with unbelievable willpower, scrambled to his feet, and dove into the nearest thicket.
"Roar—!"
The Indominus shrieked again, but by the time she stood fully upright, Carnotaurus One had long since vanished into the foliage.
Stunned, the Indominus Rex paused to think. She recalled how Carnotaurus Two had appeared—the way the creature had blended into the environment.
They have an ability similar to mine.
In a flash, she reached a conclusion and adjusted her strategy. Her eyes closed, and when they snapped open, a nictitating membrane slid across them, clearing her muddy vision.
Specialized sensory cells on her skin began to pick up thermal radiation. Within seconds, she had locked onto the positions of the two dinos.
Unaware that they had been spotted, the two Carnotaurus were still circling, looking for an opening based on her angle. This creature had invaded their territory and slaughtered the local wildlife; no predator would allow such a beast to live. It wasn't just about survival, it was about pride.
The Indominus intentionally left an opening. She tilted her head, raised her body, and exposed the vulnerable underside of her neck to Carnotaurus One.
To Carnotaurus One, it looked like the ultimate opportunity. He didn't hesitate; he lunged straight for it!
The Indominus snapped her head back into position, simultaneously shifting her body to dodge the bite. Carnotaurus Two, seeing One miss, didn't waste time and charged toward the Indominus's rear.
Her objective was clear, enough to make one's skin crawl.
The Indominus felt the chill of an approach from behind, but she had anticipated this. Her tail whipped around like a lash, precisely striking Carnotaurus Two in the head.
Working both ends of her body, the Indominus snapped her jaws shut on the retreating Carnotaurus One. She only caught his torso. It was slightly off-target, but it didn't matter. She raised her front claws, intending to pin him down and end it.
But facing death, Carnotaurus One ignored the pain of his hide being punctured. He decided to go down fighting! He lunged forward, biting down hard on the hybrid's opposable thumb, completely ignoring the skin tearing and blood spraying from his own body.
I've survived being starved for nine meals in three days! You think you can kill me?! You think you can kill... ME?!
His eyes turned bloodshot as he clamped down on that thumb. Finally, he felt the copper tang of blood flooding his mouth.
It tastes so damn sweet.
The Indominus flinched from the pain and loosened her grip, but quickly clamped down again. Ignoring her bleeding left hand, she reached out with her right to crush him.
Just as her hand touched the end of Carnotaurus One's body, her thermal vision picked up a new signal.
Her focus shifted from the Carnotaurus in her mouth to her side. Her pupils dilated instantly. She let go of One to intercept the new threat, but she couldn't shake off the Carnotaurus still death-gripped to her left thumb. Then, a cold sensation bloomed at her side, followed by a pain that pierced through her body, heading straight for her heart.
"Aunnng-roar!"
She shrieked, her neck now completely exposed.
Crrrk... Thud!
Fangs sank into flesh. Carlo clamped onto her throat, driving her backward. Sensing her balance falter, he slammed her down with brute force.
Still reeling from the shock to her [Censored], the Indominus rex couldn't resist such power. She was slammed into the earth, sending a cloud of dust into the air.
The two Carnotaurus were thrown back by the sheer force of the impact, forced to let go as they tumbled onto the ground.
Carlo moved to go for the belly, but the hybrid's survival instincts were overwhelming. She used her arms and legs to shield her vitals. No matter how Carlo lunged, he couldn't find a way to tear into her abdomen.
He quickly changed tactics. Before she could scramble up, he bit down sideways on her lower jaw, catching part of the upper maxilla as well. He twisted his entire body, dragging her across the ground in a 270-degree arc before releasing her, flinging her away.
The Indominus rex flailed her limbs in a panic to slow her momentum, tearing up chunks of green turf that flew into the air. As she slowed down, she felt the ground beneath her back vanish.
It was the waterfall.
Splash... BOOM!
She fell back-first into the lake, sending a plume of water meters high as she crashed into the bottom. Fortunately, the lake wasn't deep; she was able to find her footing.
Staggering, the Indominus crawled onto the shore and shook off the water. She didn't even have time to kill the two brothers hiding in the nearby bushes. Rising from a quadrupedal stance to a bipedal run, she fled into the depths of the jungle.
Carlo walked slowly to the edge of the cliff. Looking at the muddy tracks below, he knew she was still alive.
She survived that?!
The cliff was nearly ten meters high. Even with the water to cushion the fall, a beast as heavy as the Indominus surviving that height, and running away at full speed, was staggering.
Carlo licked the roof of his mouth. A slight sting followed, along with the metallic taste of blood. He was injured too. The quills on the hybrid's neck were not to be trifled with; the moment he had bitten down, the pain had spiked into his brain, preventing him from exerting his full strength.
Animal instinct forbids self-harm, and the Indominus rex had exploited that psychological barrier to bolster her defenses.
The murky lake water was tinged with a faint red streak. Carlo glanced at the two brothers hiding in the grass. He ignored the little ones and turned back toward the gasping Carnotaurus One.
Carnotaurus Two hadn't left this time. She lowered her head, monitoring the faint remains of his breath.
Carlo searched the jungle for mugwort leaves from memory. After chewing them into a pulp, he smeared the paste over the wounds, eventually covering One's entire flank and spine.
Feeling the sting of the medicine, Carnotaurus One opened his eyes and looked at Carnotaurus Two.
You bastard... why aren't you leaving now? When I was trying to mate with you, you couldn't run away fast enough!
He remembered how she had grown to loathe him after he led trouble her way, leading to his rejection during mating season. He felt a sense of peace.
I managed to screw her over once... totally worth it...
He closed his eyes again, his breathing ragged and shallow.
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