"Roar?"
"Roar!"
Sound of rushing water.
BioSyn Ecological Zone, beside the cross-channel. Three Mapusaurus stood face-to-face with Katyusha, separated by a wide, long river.
They seemed to have reached a strange mode of communication. After all, Mapusaurus and Giganotosaurus are essentially "hometown neighbors" from Argentina, though Mapusaurus arrived on the scene a bit later than its Giganotosaurus cousin.
But that didn't mean they could communicate without barriers. On the contrary, a conversation where they understood the sounds but not the full meaning felt incredibly abstract. To be specific, it went something like this:
"What did you have for lunch today?"
"Spaghetti mixed with Grade 42 concrete."
"No… what?"
"Rebar fries dipped in crude oil sauce."
"Wait…"
"Lollipops? You're using that as a staple food? I cannot comprehend this."
As a result, following this dialogue pattern, the mental processors of both sides successfully crashed.
"Roar—"
One of the Mapusaurus let out a high-pitched roar. It looked rather irritable, as if it wanted to settle things with Katyusha once and for all. These three dinosaurs… they seemed much more savage than normal specimens. A thick, pungent scent of blood lingered on them, far heavier than what would be left by a normal meal, yet not quite like the scent of fresh slaughter.
Sniffing sound.
Katyusha tilted her head, confirming her suspicion: they seemed to have covered their entire bodies in blood, as if… wearing a cloak? Did that serve any purpose?
"Roar…"
The opposing Mapusaurus unleashed another low, threatening growl, but Katyusha wasn't the least bit worried about them crossing the ten-meter-wide river to beat her up. After all, there was someone else watching the spectacle, wasn't there, Mr. Spino?
The river water was calm. Though it flowed slowly, it remained without a ripple.
The Spinosaurus, Mr. Spino, kept his dorsal sail submerged, revealing only his slender head like a crocodile, brazenly peeking at the dinosaurs on the bank. He seemed eager to jump in, hoping for a hearty, refreshing battle. However, considering that everyone on the bank was an expert at shedding blood and might resort to "unsportsmanlike" group-brawling, he didn't act rashly.
The Mapusaurus seemed quite keen on visiting the Giganotosaurus's territory. While Mr. Spino likely wouldn't attack them while they crossed the water… what if he did? The agility of the two species in the water was on completely different levels. Mr. Spino could swim backward faster than most large theropods could swim forward, so caution was the better part of valor.
Splash—"
"Aunnng-roar!"
Suddenly, the sound of water splashing came from afar, followed immediately by an enraged, long-drawn-out howl.
What happened?
Mr. Spino poked his head out of the water; the sound, belonging to someone who was arguably of his own kind, drew his attention.
Hmm… looks like another failure. How can there be such a clumsy dinosaur? How did he even grow that big?
After a moment of contemplation, Mr. Spino made his move, diving and swimming toward the source of the sound. Seeing that the coast was clear, the Mapusaurus turned their heads back to look at Katyusha… but where had she gone?!
"Roar—"
The long howl echoed through the forest, shaking the stability of the BioSyn Ecological Zone.
…
Malta.
[The ships are each carrying four dinosaurs, they are…]
"Pfft… cough."
Claire and Owen were walking through the streets of Valletta, heading toward the designated spot Franklin had given them to meet their contact. The former had been glancing at the news while drinking water and nearly choked to death.
"What is it?"
Owen stopped in his tracks, patted Claire on the back, and asked softly.
"Owen… look at these three black silhouettes… aren't they a bit familiar?"
After catching her breath, Claire handed her phone to Owen. After staring at it for a moment, his expression became increasingly abstract.
"Blue?! Echo?! Delta?! Crossing the Atlantic?! And… a Giganotosaurus?!!!"
I see it now; you're all master experts.
Owen nearly fainted on the spot. Why did it feel like things were getting more and more troublesome? How had the world become like a movie? Was the next step going to be a gunfight, escaping dinosaurs, and a direct assault on enemy headquarters?
"Owen."
A familiar voice sounded from behind. Before Owen could recover from his existential crisis, he turned to see Barry walking toward him. After a momentary stun, his sadness turned to joy, and he stepped forward to embrace his old friend.
"Hi, Claire."
After reconnecting with Owen, Barry greeted Claire. As she had been Owen's former assistant and someone who could keep up with Owen and the raptors, the three of them were quite close.
"I thought you would have chosen a safer line of work."
"Indeed. My cousin and I opened a café, but I only did it for three weeks… The world is going to hell. I don't want to wait in a café just to be eaten like a cup of coffee by a dinosaur."
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Barry signaled for them to follow, not forgetting to explain the situation as they walked.
"A broker for the dinosaur black market… We don't have intelligence on the cargo. After the trade is complete, we'll go ask that girl for intel."
He handed the organization's internal comms earpieces to Owen and Claire, a testament to the level of trust he had in them, which was beyond words.
"You can listen, but you are not to act on your own."
"We won't."
Claire responded almost instinctively. Barry said nothing, only looking at Owen. For once, Owen had the self-awareness to stay silent and not make a promise he couldn't keep.
Barry nodded helplessly; everything was understood without needing to be said.
"The scale of the Malta dinosaur black market is immense. Cargo from Europe, the Middle East, and North America all passes through here."
Barry continued to explain as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a special copper coin, politely dropping it into a beggar's rusted cup.
Beep!
The beggar sitting against the wall seemed quite familiar with Barry. Without even glancing at the coin, he pulled out a remote control and opened the stone door beside him.
Click-clack…
The sound of gears turning echoed. Several locks behind the stone door slowly unlocked, revealing a dark, narrow passageway.
Indescribable drumbeat.
Continuing forward, they reached the largest dinosaur underground black market in Malta. It was essentially no different from a commercial street in a bustling city. Of course, only in terms of busyness. Looking at its appearance, it was mostly retro-style… well, "primitive society" retro.
Lightbulbs were almost non-existent; lighting was mostly provided by torches and sunlight filtering through gaps in the stone. Dinosaur bone artifacts and dinosaur barbecues were everywhere. A dinosaur baby fighting pit occupied one area; there was even a dinosaur pet shop?
However, everything sold here consisted of common species; even the largest grew no bigger than a juvenile Dryosaurus.
"Don't look at anyone, don't talk to anyone, and try to blend in."
Owen and Claire remained silent for the duration of the entry. Barry left them with this final warning, and seeing them nod, he walked into a shop, acting as though it were casual, to meet up with his teammates.
———————
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over here ——— pa-tre-on.c-om/AlexandrusTL [remove the hyphen for normal access]