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Chapter 208 - Volume 4 Preview

One year later. The Mojave Preserve. Dusk.

With human intervention, the massive oasis had regained a significant amount of its vitality, recovering well from their past devastation. Deep within the dense forest bordering the lake, two silhouettes, one colossal, one smaller, lay resting side by side. It was Stego bro and Carlo. They... appeared to be holding some sort of bizarre conversation.

"Roar?"

"Aunnng…"

Stego bro lay lazily on the ground, seemingly resting its eyes. Every time Carlo let out a low rumble, it would echo back a resonant call in response.

"Roar?"

"Aunnng…"

As night fell, Carlo's low rumbles abruptly ceased. Stego bro split its eyes open just a tiny fraction, observing the other's steady, even breathing. He's probably asleep.

Goodnight then, silly kid.

"Move it! Haul them out!"

The thrumming beat of helicopter rotors cut through the night sky. Unrecognizable humans shouted and barked orders as heavy shipping containers were hoisted into the air. The furious roars of Giganotosaurus split the heavens.

"ROOAR—"

An all-consuming bellow, powerful enough to drown out every living thing, sounded the war horn against humanity.

"What are you doing out here?"

On the snow-covered plains, Owen sat atop a majestic horse, holding the reins of a Parasaurolophus, locked in a tense standoff with a group of... fellow wranglers blocking his path?

"Containing dinosaurs. Protecting them. Just like you do."

A wicked, cynical smile spread across the opposing man's face.

"I don't just want this ugly creature. If you could create it once, you can create it a second time!"

"I didn't create him!"

Inside the clean, clinical atmosphere of a scientific laboratory, a fierce, discordant argument erupted. Dr. Henry Wu, his hair now grown out long, stared at Dodgson with sheer disbelief before continuing:

"You aren't looking for a biological organism, or even a monster. You're looking for total extinction."

A swarm of locusts covered the sky like a rolling sea of clouds, blotting out the sun as they swept across one human farmland after another.

"Aok!?"

Little Blue let out a terrified shriek as a heavy containment net completely enveloped her body.

"Something massive is unfolding. If we aren't careful, we will bring about our own doom long before the dinosaurs ever do."

Ian Malcolm's voice broadcasted from the radio. He had always been fond of delivering these "doomsday" proclamations, and Alan Grant had long since grown accustomed to it.

Grant simply spent his days at his excavation site, poured over his research on dinosaur fossils, and remained utterly tongue-tied whenever kids asked him why he didn't just study real, living dinosaurs out in the world.

But today, an entirely unexpected guest arrived.

"Ellie Sattler?"

The woman inside the tent turned around. Time had left its mark on her, yet her charm remained entirely undiminished.

"Long time no see."

"You didn't come all this way just to catch up on old times, did you?"

Seeing the knowing, playful smirk on Ellie's face, Grant's initial smile gradually faded.

"Wait, you actually didn't?"

The scene shifted abruptly. A Yutyrannus stood proudly atop a mountain peak. Planting its feet wide apart, it drew in a massive breath and unleashed an ear-splitting, deafening roar!

"I promise you, I'll bring her back."

Owen held up his right hand, signaling for the agitated Blue to calm down.

"Hold on. You made a promise... to a dinosaur?"

Inside the dimly lit control room, Malcolm stared at Owen, who was carrying a juvenile Velociraptor on his back, looking completely baffled.

Are raptors nowadays different from the ones back then? Or have dinosaurs successfully tamed humanity? I know every single one of those words individually, but when you put them together like that, they make absolutely no sense.

He blatantly leaned toward Grant, whispering right out in the open:

"So... is he an idiot?"

"I can hear you."

Thud... Thud...

Colossal theropod footprints compressed the earth. Accompanied by the rustling of the woods, two Giganotosaurus strode out of the forest one after the other, approaching the riverbank.

"ROAR—"

Led by Katyusha, the Giganotosaurus pack unleashed fierce roars. The ones directly across from them... could be considered their distant relatives?

The leaves shook violently once more as three Mapusaurus arrived upon hearing the commotion, roaring just as loudly to stake their claim on the territory.

A true clash of titans.

Fortunately, the intersecting river channels split the area into four separate zones. There was a decent chance they wouldn't instantly kill each other... right?

"Aunnng-roar!"

A Scientificus Tyrannosaurus poked its head out from the river, highly annoyed by this bunch of rude, loud-mouthed brutes throwing a tantrum right over its head.

The river is my home; civility depends on everyone.

Holy shit, there are still other heavy hitters here? What did I do to deserve being stuck in the middle of this?

Rexy, who occupied her own isolated zone, chose not to stick her head out. She slowly backed away, deciding it was best to completely sit this one out.

Thud!

Who's there?!

Two Tyrannosaurus rex that looked physically identical, and were both acting incredibly shifty, turned around simultaneously, unleashing threatening low rumbles!

Then, both of them froze.

And thus, the tale of an older, mature queen and a pure, innocent young boy began.

"We're running out of time."

Swarms of locusts carrying ablaze trailed into the sky, dropping embers like falling stars into the forest, perfectly mirroring the apocalyptic scenes from hundreds of millions of years ago.

Three slender, blade-like digits sliced through the air, leaving three bloody gashes across a Giganotosaurus's face.

As flaming trees collapsed, Giga Dad pulled out his trusty little tools, working at maximum speed to suppress the fire. Though it was a painfully slow process, it was the absolute limit of what he could achieve.

On a frozen lake, a Yutyrannus engaged in a tense standoff with Owen. But in the very next instant, a massive stone wall shattered! Debris plummeted from the sky, smashing through the thick sheet of ice.

"Damn it!"

When the dust cleared and they looked back, the Yutyrannus had already made its clean escape.

"Dinosaurs possess immense potential as biological weapons, but... we must eliminate all unpredictability."

Modular iron cages hissed open, and four feathered Atrociraptors slowly materialized from the shadows. Side by side with poachers and wanted fugitives, they completely cornered Owen and Barry's team.

"They actually did it..."

Barry kept his weapon raised, forming a defensive circle back-to-back with his squadmates as they faced down the Atrociraptors.

"Aok!"

With a nimble, effortless leap, three Velociraptors suddenly materialized atop an abandoned car. Blue stood at the absolute forefront, tilting her head as she calmly evaluated the situation.

"Roar—"

The Atrociraptors let out threatening, low growls at the uninvited guests. Seeing this, Owen flashed a confident smirk, locking eyes with the white-suited woman across from him who had looked so utterly self-assured just moments ago.

"Gentlemen, remember: do not shoot the Velociraptors."

"I can't tell them apart!!"

"Then shoot the ones with the feathers."

Uh oh. We probably shouldn't have engineered those upgrades.

THUD!

"Grant? What on earth are you doing?"

"Something incredibly stupid."

A flare gun was loaded. With a sharp hiss, a bright red trail of fire sliced across the sky once more.

"Even though she almost took my life once, she also saved it. We're even."

The flare drifted down into the jungle canopy, illuminating another monolithic silhouette.

"Aunnng-roar——"

An irregular, jagged sail drifted into view, weaving through the towering trees. A hollow, soul-piercing howl reverberated through the surroundings.

It sounded exactly like the tolling bell of the Grim Reaper.

...

"Following extensive deliberation, the US Federal Government has officially enacted the Dinosaur Hunting Act, taking into account multiple variables, including the fact that dinosaurs have broken through their genetic constraints and begun natural reproduction."

"First: The systematic, genocidal slaughter of dinosaur populations is strictly prohibited."

"Second..."

The roar of modified truck engines echoed across the plains. Triceratops collapsed one after another as the herd fled toward the dense jungle in sheer panic.

BOOM!

A colossal footstep trampled down, sending a tremor through the hearts of every living soul present. The Triceratops looked up at the mountain-like, majestic dark shadow looming over them. Gradually, they calmed down, brushing past the giant as they sought refuge under the canopy of the forest.

The hunters' car engines sputtered and cut out; none dared to drive a single inch further forward.

"ROOOAR—"

A furious bellow pierced straight through the clouds.

"He cannot remain here."

Yellow flares shot into the sky. The Giganotosaurus pack scaled rugged mountains, crossed roaring rivers, traversed wide grasslands, and swam across deep straits. Throughout their frantic escape, they clashed with human forces time and time again.

Mosasaurus breached the ocean surface in tandem with a humpback whale, letting out a beautifully resonant, low song.

Beneath the dawn, the great dinos fall.

Before the dawn, the great dinos vanish.

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