by Steve Cole
“Me am C. rex!” the bizarre beast grunted. “C. rex short for . . . Tyrannosaurus Cow!”
“Or ‘cow-rex’?” Arx suggested. “You know, like a T. rex crossed with a cow?”
“Oh. Yeah,” said the C. rex. “That be it.”
Iggy looked blank. “What’s a cow?”
“A grass-eating animal that evolved on Earth long after we dinos moved away,” explained Gipsy. “I read about them in a galactic science book. That wobbly-bobbly pink thing is an udder, I think. Cows make milk in them to give to their babies.”
“All T. rexes give their babies is a dead rat and a bite on the bum,” Arx noted. “Maybe this creature is kinder.”
Teggs was puzzled. “But our long-range mega-scopes show that Earthling spacecraft are primitive compared to ours. How could a cow reach the Jurassic Quadrant?”
Suddenly, the C. rex reared up. “Ugh!” It spat out its green meal. “Me hopes grass gonna taste better with RAW MEAT . . .” Jaws opening wide, the monster stomped towards the astrosaurs.
“Battle stations, everyone!” Teggs cried. He curled into a spiky ball and hurled himself at the thing’s legs.
THUMP! The C. rex tripped over and fell flat on its snout.
But before the other astrosaurs could grab it, the monster rolled over and fired a sizzling spray from its udder.
“Arrrgh!” Teggs cried as his skin steamed in the downpour. “That’s not milk . . .”
The C. rex grinned and nodded. “It be stomach acid!”
“Gross!” Teggs hurled himself clear of the udder attack, cooling his burned skin in a big swampy puddle. “Gipsy!” he shouted. “Signal the Sauropod and get reinforcements!”
“I’m on it,” she called, rushing back to the shuttle.
Arx lowered his horns. “I think it’s time we taught this thing a lesson.”
“That’s a stunning idea!” said Iggy. He raised his special claws, and blue crackles of energy fired from the tips.
The C. rex was stopped for a moment by the electric onslaught. Arx charged, aiming for its udder. But at the last moment the monster grabbed him round the neck with its long tail. It spun him round and threw him at Iggy – just as the iguanodon fired a second time. ZZZAPPPP! Both astrosaurs were engulfed in the stunning sparks and collapsed on the ground.
“Oh no!” Teggs rushed across to check on his fallen friends. “Arx! Iggy!” Their eyes were closed, and they were hardly breathing. “Hang in there, guys,” he said, using his spiky tail to drag his crew mates towards Shuttle Alpha. “I’ll get you out of here.”
“Ha!” snarled the C. rex, pounding towards him. “Not if me gets you first.” But then Gipsy bounded back out of the shuttle, a speeding blur. “Keep going, Captain! I’ll buy you some time.” She launched herself into a flying jump-kick . . .
Unfortunately, the C. rex lowered its hugely horned head and butted her in mid-air – WHUMP!
“Yeooowwwww!” Gipsy flew straight over Teggs and smashed into the side of the shuttle.
“Gipsy!” Teggs cried. He hurried across to where she lay face-down in the dirt. A big bump had come up on the back of her head.
“Now she’s out cold too!” Teggs quickly heaved her aboard the shuttle, doing the same for Iggy and Arx. “I only hope reinforcements are on the way . . .”
He trailed off as another figure strode down the flying saucer’s ramp to stand beside the snarling C. rex. It looked like a robotic cow encased in armour, walking on mechanical hind legs, with glowing green eyes and jagged metal horns. Its snout was pierced by a silver ring. T-5 was stamped on the golden breastplate.
“Not a bad start.” The creature patted the C. rex on the back. “Well done.”
Teggs flexed his tail in warning. “I don’t know who you are,” he began, “but if that thing’s your pet, you should keep it under control.”
“The dinosaur moo-tant is not a pet. It is a weapon.” The creature smiled evilly. “I am TER-MOO-NATOR T-5. I serve the Fed-up Bull Institute – a master race of conquering cattle from the planet Earth. We intend to dominate the galaxy – and NOTHING will stand in our way!”
SECRET AGENT MUMMY: THE CLEOPATRA CASE
AN RHCP DIGITAL EBOOK 978 1 448 15828 7
Published in Great Britain by RHCP Digital,
an imprint of Random House Children’s Publishers UK
A Penguin Random House Company
This ebook edition published 2015
Text copyright © Steve Cole, 2015
Cover artwork copyright © Dave Shelton, 2015
Interior illustrations copyright © Donough O’Malley, 2015
Ancient Egypt Advisor – Louise Ellis-Barrett
First Published in Great Britain
Red Fox 9781849418706 2015
The right of Steve Cole to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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