[Part 1] The Sleeping City

The cold, dark night was at its peak, enveloping what seemed to be a rather abnormal refuge, unlike the earth, leaves, logs, or even the stone they were accustomed to in their daily lives. The territory was unfamiliar, alien to them; there was no trace of any way out beyond the starry sky in the darkness that hung over the place. As the hours passed, the temperature dropped, and a faint mist was noticeable with each breath. There was silence. Occasionally, it was broken by the howl of the wind traveling between the large, destroyed structures and, occasionally, the agonizing creaking of the little material that still remained standing despite the years. There were structures that appeared to be made of stone; no one seemed to have seen such a massive amount of stone sculpted so perfectly. Added to this, everything rose from the ground, creating a concrete labyrinth. It was terrifying. Everything was so artificial.

 

Ceedri huddled beneath a large metal beam holding the rubble above him, his gaze peering outward. He wasn't entirely sure if it would be a good environment, but as long as he maintained his camouflage, he had no complaints. Although he could hear a slight breeze under his paws, as if there were a large cavern there, it didn't give him any confidence in the safety of the place. The Cryolophosaurus wasn't yet an adult, but its sheer size and weight already showed that, while it couldn't compete with truly gigantic creatures, it could hold its own against a fair number of species. He could now put up a fight and show off the stamina, scales, and tough skin he'd acquired over the years. Having been raised by a Styracosaurus that didn't listen to reason and sometimes acted erratically against itself, against him, and against any living thing within sight of its single eye had paid off. Ceedri acquired that stubbornness for wanting to live, and his appetite for fresh meat, but not the aberrant cruelty and thirst for blood that the cursed Styracosaurus had.

 

With a roar through the ruins, the clash of two furious creatures echoed. He recognized that sound. He knew it all too well. He was just getting up when suddenly, out of the rubble, the great bull appeared, propelled forward, its body slashing at everything in its path. The one-eyed male tried to slow its advance with its hind legs while the other Styracosaurus pressed its head against it in a show of power. The carnivore managed to move aside before Descole was slammed against the wall, raising a cloud of dust and cobwebs as its opponent retreated. Ceedri briefly saw a strange object around the other animal's neck through the cloud that covered it. It was strange; he had never seen a metallic-equipped object that reflected on an individual. He seemed enthralled, strangely surprised by the small reflection in the darkness until his gaze met the orbs belonging to the wearer of that unnatural accessory.

 

The gray Styracosaurus stares back at him for a moment, those pearly white eyes surrounded by a black tear-shaped mark running along its face, horn, and crest. Ceedri was hit with her breath, and she had snorted with a certain degree of superiority, showing no fear in the least. She even seemed to laugh at him, and her molars were visible on her elongated snout, the tips of her teeth somewhat sharp for a typical plant-eater. She didn't seem to pay him any attention after that, and her attention returned to the attacked animal.

 

—“I see you’re still determined to stick to that plan. I thought you’d moved on from it.”— She brushes dust and stones from her plumage, subtly threatening Descole with her horn. He glared at her, taking an offensive stance in response. —“You should just give up already. You know? Nothing will ever give you back your precious horn, or your place in the pack, or his forgiveness…”— She tilts her head, ready to test her strength against him again. —“…If it even was possible. No one even remembers you as their role model anymore.”

 

—"Be quiet, Meredith!"— Descole lunges at her, easily falling for the provocation and locking their foreheads again to wrestle with their nose horns. The sound of their intertwined horns resonates through the structure again, scattering some of the dust that was floating in the air.

 

Meredith? Ceedri had heard that name from his ramblings before, when he seemed to be doing something but the light in his eyes was dull, when his consciousness was absent and he simply behaved like an erratic beast, attacking and devouring everything in his path. His thoughts were interrupted when he noticed Meredith effortlessly pushing Descole away again; he didn't have time to look for a space to avoid him when he was also crushed against the wall.

 

—"Come on! What's wrong with you?!"— She encouraged him with a smile, mocking him to purposefully irritate him and make him lose his temper even more. —"Have you lost all your strength after all this time?! Watch how you damage that vermin!"— There was an occasional creaking noise. Whether it came from the battered wall or one of their bodies didn't matter; she simply didn't care.

 

Meredith continued to press, her horn almost brushing Descole's scars, tearing a few scales around the scar. She was going straight for the damage. She loved to hurt, to make others miserable. Ceedri was trapped, unable to move, feeling frustrated. He was sure he could do something now, only to have his confidence shattered again, as it often happened time and time again. Descole was between a rock and a hard place, wanting to confront his old acquaintance, if he could still classify her under that title. The grunts and bellows of the animals stopped dead in their tracks when a roar came from the poor structure. Cursing under her breath, Meredith undoes the hook she had on her horns and prepares to get out from under the structure, already familiar with that pitiful sound the walls made before giving way under the weight.

 

Silence once again reigned in this sleeping city, along with a cloud of dust that rose once the structure had collapsed and buried the two dinosaurs alive. The Styracosaurus reappeared from the wreckage, analyzing the rubble as it circled around in search of any clue or sign that might indicate the two were still alive. She walked, sniffing and kicking the pieces until she quickly grew bored. There was no point in continuing to search. Like him, her solution to problems was simply to bury them and forget about them, pretending they never happened or affected her. That was what she had learned from him, what he had taught her after being expelled from their herd in the past to become this kind of outlaw. Leaving behind the protection of the herd and social behavior that would allow them a chance to increase their chances of survival. With a grunt and a last glance, she takes in the surroundings before slowly disappearing into the streets, blending in among the ruins of the buildings. Relieved to have rid herself of the last vestige of her past.