by Dan Thomas
Max was sure he heard something crack as Suzaro doubled over. Ticket grabbed hold of the collar of her armor, yanking her forward so that she fell onto the ground.
Sam strode over to the dropped spear, kicked it up into the air, and caught it. She turned back to Suzaro who was pushing herself to her feet, clutching her side.
“Don’t bother coming back when you respawn, there’s not going to be anything here.” Ticket launched the spear at her, hitting her hard as she collapsed onto the dirt.
Max watched Ticket straighten up, blood running down her armor from the gash on her arm. “I’m glad you didn’t do that to me when we were sparring.”
“I didn’t need to.” Ticket flashed a smile as she bent down to retrieve her knife.
Max looked past her to the noob who had been standing like a statue, probably hoping that if he stayed still enough, they wouldn’t notice them.
As soon as Max’s eyes landed on him, he held up his hands. “Come on, guys, don’t kill me. I don’t even know what’s going on, or who you are. I’ve just got my first Construction Trait I’ve been grinding out for a week; I don’t want to lose it already.”
Sam looked at Max, who shrugged. Max recognized him as Tero, who had only joined the Crew a couple of weeks ago, the noob he had saved from another reprimanding from the Ravagers.
“We just want you to know that the Ravagers are bad people. You’re best off on your own or finding another Crew, and as long as you don’t make us regret this, we’ll let you go.”
Tero’s eyes widened in surprise. “Really? I mean, thanks, I’m not going to mess with you, don’t worry.” He took one last glance at the group of dinos watching him before he turned and ran downhill, taking a wide berth around the Hesperosaurus and second Torosaurus with the battering ram.
“I’ll be honest, I didn’t think we’d make it this far.” Max called his Utahraptor over to him, checking the dino’s injuries.
Sam joined him, running her hand down the predator’s feathered neck as it crowed softly. “I knew we’d do it. It’s surprising what we can get done when we all work together.” She turned to the last gate, the tower and walls next to it still empty. “But it’s not over yet.”
“You guys need to hurry up and get in here,” Pez’s strained voice cut in over the comms. “They’re waiting for you at the gate, but if you don’t make your move soon, they’re going to turn on me. How far off are you?”
“We’re just at the second gate now, we’ve just got to break in,” Ticket said. “How are things looking?”
“I can’t get past Remington; we’re going to all be standing here all day if something doesn’t give.”
“Can’t you shoot him off his dino?” Chopsticks piped up. “You’re a crack shot.”
“Can’t you send your little piranha dinos to climb up and eat him?” Pez retorted. “I’m out of ammo, but I think most of them are, too. The raptors have managed to fight everyone off the wall, but they holed up in the tower. I can’t do much from here.”
“Is that why no one’s shooting us?” Ticket asked.
“Yeah, they won’t be able to get on top of the tower without having to fight our raptors.”
Max began to bandage his wounds. “Can you see what’s waiting for us on the other side?”
“Yeah, I think there’s a Carnotaurus, I can see raptors, and—crap! Back up, back up.” Pez went quiet for a moment. “I can’t see around the wall now. There were maybe ten players.”
“If you guys can get everyone fighting you, I can run to the tower and take out whoever’s in there, free up the raptors to help you take out Remington,” Chopsticks said.
“There’s a good five players in there, you think you’ll be able to take them on?” Pez sounded skeptical.
“Cramped spaces I can flood with dinos? I can handle them.”
“Okay,” Ticket said. “We’ve got a plan. Barely. We’ll leave Taz here and charge in with everyone else. You ready, Holic?”
Max nodded. “Let’s go kick some ass.” He grabbed hold of the raptor’s neck and swung himself up into the saddle, moving out of the middle of the track.
Like a conductor of a silent orchestra, Ticket shuffled the dinos around, Taz moving close to the wall along with the boneheads, leaving plenty of space for the Torosaurus with the battering ram, which had retreated down the hill, past the broken barricade.
It stood huffing, stamping its foot as it waited for the word to go from Ticket. She must have given the command because it began running, slower to build up speed as it ran uphill, thundering past where Max and the dinos were standing.
The battering ram, awkwardly overhanging the Torosaurus’ frills, collided with the gate, the wood and metal construction shuddering from the impact, but it didn’t give in.
The dino walked backward again, reaching the barricade before lurching forward, charging for the gate again.
This time when it hit the reinforced wood there was a loud crack as the ram pushed through the gate, which buckled under the force. The Torosaurus had no chance of slowing its momentum as it shouldered through the breach in the gate, tearing the whole thing down.
“Let’s go!” Max shouted, the raptor running forward, followed closely behind by the pack of boneheads which made bleating sounds as they ran for the now open gateway.
With the thundering of the larger dinos behind him and the gunshots in front of him, the Utahraptor leaped over the shattered ruins of the gate and into the Ravagers’ base. The smell of soot caught in the back of Max’s throat from the smoking ruins of the storehouse. As Max scanned across the base, he could see Remington’s Majungatholus, still standing firm at the broken wall.
The first Torosaurus had charged through the middle of the group of players and dinos, one of the smaller Deinonychus being crushed while everything else scattered out of the way, except for the Carnotaur, which had taken the brunt of the charge. Using its height to reach over the Torosaurus’ frill and bite down onto the wood of the battering ram tied around its back, the cracking sound was that of wood rather than bones.
The players that had time to dive out of the way turned and opened fire on the dino, a barrage of arrows and bullets peppering its gray, fissured hide.
“Crap,” Max breathed when he saw Saturn and Jupiter at the back of the group. He didn’t have time to react before the Utahraptor had launched itself through the air at the nearest players, latching on with its talons and biting down on a screaming player’s neck as they collapsed under the weight of the dino.
The raptor shrieked as an arrow embedded itself in its body, hopping off the dead player and dashing across the edge of the group, Max launching an arrow at one of the Ravagers’ Deinonychus, frantically reaching for his poisoned obsidian arrows.
The boneheads then rushed past, charging headlong into the group. Many of the Deinonychus leaped off the Torosaurus they had been gnawing at, running to meet the new threat. Players shot at the group of boneheads as they spread out. Like homing missiles, they charged for the Ravagers that were only just realizing that they wouldn’t be able to stop the dinos in time.
Some of the Ravagers managed to roll or step out of the way of the dinos, but many were battered to the ground by the domed heads of the Stegoceras.
The air was then filled with the blaring calls of the boneheads as raptors snapped at them, many leaped onto them, grappling onto the herbivores’ backs and biting down.
The lynx that had been prowling around the back of the group launched an almost impossible distance, colliding with one of the boneheads, taking it to the floor, and tearing at it with huge claws.
Max glanced over his shoulder back toward the gate just in time to see the second Torosaurus clear the gate, stampeding toward the melee, followed closely behind by the slower Hesperosaurus. Many of the raptors let go of the boneheads they had been grappling with, scampering out of the path of the Torosaurus. Any players that weren’t trying to spear the boneheads or the first Torosaurus turned to fa
ce the new threat.
The Torosaurus skidded to a halt to avoid crushing its allies. One of the Ravagers rushed forward, spear held out, but as they approached, the Torosaurus stepped forward, and with a flick of its head impaled the player on its spike, tossing them to the side. As a number of the raptors cautiously approached, it snapped its beaked jaws at them, stamping its wide feet on the floor.
The Hesperosaurus didn’t charge head on, instead shifting its bulk around the edge of the fight, its tail held high, heading for the Carnotaur, which jolted its head up, tearing off the battering ram from the Torosaurus.
As the larger dinos sought to crush the enemy, Max struggled to aim straight shots as his raptor weaved its way past players and Deinonychus fighting with boneheads and dancing around the Torosaurus, hunting for an easy kill. Max swiveled in the saddle, his bow drawn.
He caught a glimpse of Striker in the melee, swinging his axe wildly at a bonehead, cutting deep into its chest. As the raptor spotted a downed player picking themselves up after a bonehead had charged past him, Max took a deep breath, triggering one of his Marksman Traits, and loosed his arrow at Striker, seeing it ping off his armor, staggering him, before Max was nearly thrown from the saddle as the Utahraptor lurched forward, clamping its jaws around the neck of the injured player.
Max grabbed another arrow. As he looked around for his next target, he spotted Ticket. He hadn’t even seen her pass through the gateway, but there she was gliding through the chaos, pausing only long enough to line up a shot. He let the bowstring go, and the arrow whizzed through the air, knocking a raptor off one of the boneheads which had been running around wildly, trying to shake it off. The Deinonychus got back to its feet, but it wouldn’t stay there long with the poison now in its bloodstream.
Max grabbed another arrow as one of the Ravagers ran toward Ticket, a club held ready to swing. Max swung his bow around, trying to shoot the player before they could reach Ticket, but before he could level his arrow, TOD had leaped from Ticket’s shoulders, sinking his metal claws into the player’s chest, who shrieked from pain and surprise before flitting up back into the air. Ticket turned, pulling her knife from her belt and slashing across the player’s body, her knife back in its sheath and another arrow in her hand before the body had even hit the floor.
Max glanced toward the breach in the wall. The smoke was beginning to fade, and he could now clearly see past the Majungatholus, to where Abe and Lis were snapping at the larger carnivore every time it made a move, not giving Remington an inch. He could just about see Pez on Lis’ back, finishing reloading his rifle before aiming it at the Majungatholus, firing off what must have been his last ten rounds in rapid succession, while Remington responded by launching his spear at Pez. Red sprayed away from the Majungatholus as the bullets ripped through it, while Remington’s spear flew past Pez. Max couldn’t tell whether Pez was hit, but he could tell that Pez’s gunshots had only seemed to anger the larger predator more as it stamped its feet on the loose rubble, crushing bricks as it tried to gain a foothold from which to charge up the debris and swing the stalemate in its favor. Max could only think of the willpower it was taking Remington to stop the hulking beast from charging recklessly into Abe and Lis.
Abe seemed to sense that the Majungatholus was going to go on the offensive and took the initiative. The Abelisaur ducked its head low, lunging forward, and colliding with bone-shattering force into the predator’s chest.
The Majungatholus teetered backward, almost losing its footing as the rubble underfoot shifted from the movement as Abe kept pushing forward. The Majungatholus tilted its head and brought its wide jaws down, sinking its teeth into Abe’s back with crushing force, whipping its head back and forth as it tore at the Abelisaurus’ flesh. The metal armor ripped like paper in its jaws. Abe was almost pulled off of his feet, but managed to keep upright, still pressing against the larger dino.
There wasn’t much give, but it was enough. Lis stomped forward, able to just about squeeze past Abe and the wall, her body brushing against the Majungatholus, knocking off a few more loose bricks from the wall as she pushed past.
Max’s attention was snapped back to the fight at hand as his raptor sprang backward out of the way of a spear thrust.
Max leaned to one side, getting a clear view of the player around the raptor’s neck, and shot an arrow down at them. The arrow whistled across the small distance, sinking into the player’s leg. They staggered from the hit. The raptor lunged forward, still thirsty for blood, but the player reacted quickly, swiping their spear. The Utahraptor shrieked as the flint tip cut into its feathered hide and dashed to one side to avoid being impaled on the weapon.
The raptor snapped its slender jaws at the spear, looking for an opportunity to slip past, but the player kept it firmly in between them.
Max saw a flash of movement as a bonehead appeared from outside his field of view, pummeling the player to the ground. As the bonehead carried on its charging, headed for a Deinonychus, the Utahraptor nipped forward to finish off the player, who held up his hands to try and fend off the raptor’s jaws.
As his mount tore at the Ravager, Max took another moment to glance around him. Numbers were dwindling on both sides, six players lying dead among the bodies of Deinonychus raptors and boneheads, only four players, including Striker, remained, as well as a handful of dinos. The first Torosaurus had managed to shrug off the Carnotaur, which was pouring blood out of its side from deep gouges that could only come from the spiked tail of the Hesperosaurus. The Torosaurus kept the Carnotaur away from the battle, brandishing its horns which the Carnotaur was now less eager to contend with.
Max could see Goose and Nik with their small pack of raptors which had been guarding Chopsticks had moved away from their position, sprinting over the base to join the carnage. Ticket must have spotted them, too, because the Hesperosaurus, which had been holding its tail high, ready to finish the Carnotaur, had moved away, positioning itself to block the incoming reinforcements. The Hesperosaurus made a wide sweep with its tail. The two mounted Ravagers and most of their raptors stopped well out of the way, but one too eager tried to duck under the swing, being impaled onto the larger dino’s spikes with a sickening sound.
He felt a brief moment of relief when he spotted Saturn and Jupiter still standing some way away from the fight, seeming to be refusing to get involved in the combat.
The brief relief left when he saw that the second Torosaurus was faring less well, trying to trample the two Ravagers attacking it with spears, but moving far too slow to catch them. Three raptors were gripped onto its body, tearing at the thick hide.
“Chopsticks, if you’re going to make a move, do it now!” Ticket’s voice came into Max’s ear, cutting across the screams and shrieks of both animals and players fighting.
Max resisted the urge to turn his gaze back toward the fight between the larger carnivores at the wall, instead focusing on Striker as he slung himself onto the back of the lynx, which turned its fanged face to lock eyes with him while it stood still for Striker.
Max stowed his bow over his shoulder, reaching for his spear as his raptor gave the body of the player one last shake, before dropping the lifeless corpse, raising its scaly muzzle toward its new opponent.
Once Striker was on the beast’s back, axe in hand, the lynx prowled toward them, picking over a corpse as the breeze ruffled its bloodstained fur.
The sounds of the battle faded away as the Utahraptor turned to face Striker, lowering its head with a rasping hiss. Max could feel the dinosaur tense like a loaded spring, its feathers bristling in anticipation.
Max’s heart raced as the two animals tentatively approached each other, and he could see the rage on Striker’s face.
With a snarl, the lynx launched off of the ground, its clawed feet outstretched, its fanged mouth open.
The raptor leaped backward, just out of reach of the lunge, and kicked out with its foot as the lynx landed, slashing the animal across the face. Instead of reco
iling, the beast swiped with its huge paws, tearing gouges down the raptor’s chest.
Max leaned forward over the dino’s neck, stabbing at Striker with his spear, but he easily deflected the blow with his axe.
The lynx swiped again, but the raptor was ready, ducking away from the attack and darting forward, clamping its jaws around the nape of the beast’s neck.
Striker leaned forward, axe raised to hack at the dino, but as he brought it down, Max jabbed with his spear, hitting the blade of the axe and knocking it away with his Quick Block.
The Lynx howled and tried to wrench itself out of the raptor’s jaws, but the dino held tight, stepping alongside the Lynx’s body to stay behind its front paws, turning with it.
Striker was at pretty much the same height as Max when Max stabbed with his spear as the animals bumped together. Striker leaned to one side, and raised his arm, the spear zipping past him. He then brought his arm back down, clamping the weapon against his body, swinging his axe with the other.
Max let go of the spear with one hand, raising it to catch Striker’s arm, stopping the attack just above his head.
The world spun around them as they struggled, grunting in exertion as they tried to overpower one another, while the Lynx hissed and spat, the Utahraptor refusing to let go.
“You’re gonna die, Holic!” Striker screamed. “I’m gonna fucking kill you!”
“I’d like. To see. You try!” Holic growled through gritted teeth, forcing himself to ignore his leg being crushed in between the two mounts, using it to lever himself toward Striker, who was beginning to tip away from him.
Max balled his hand into a fist, socking it across Striker’s jaw. The Ravager’s head snapped back, losing his grip on the spear which fell to the ground. He tried to yank his axe away from Max, but he had an iron grip around the Ravager’s arm.
