Nocturnal Hunt

The night was alive with the chirping of insects and the croak of distant frogs, streams of moonlight glinted off the fresh green leaves and glittered on the water which had been collected during the earlier rainstorm. The storm had left the ground damp and loose, tricky to navigate but far from impossible.

F-23’s belly scraped along the well trodden earth, all around them their territory was alive with the aforementioned insects and frogs. However none of which were the large carnivore’s prey. Straight ahead loomed a large brown shape deep within the brush, a large sleeping buck hiding himself amongst the dense and dark greenery. A relatively small meal for something as large as herself, but a meal nonetheless… One that would at least feed her hungry mate. 

The crack of a branch caused them to freeze mid step, claws hovering over the earth as they watched silently. The buck’s head snapped up, ears flicking as it examined its surroundings. It stood quickly, ears pricked in alarm. Obviously the buck saw something because suddenly its dark pelt was bounding away through bushes and trees.
Damn. Another kill lost to the night…
Above them the starry sky twinkled, providing dim light… Not that they needed it. Spending so long in the lab dark sub levels had made F-23 well practiced at peering through the dark for food or threats. So they waited patiently amongst the dark green undergrowth, hardly breathing for fear of scaring off what dared to frighten their prey. F-23 half expected to see the hulking mass of another acrocanthosaurus, however what emerged from the brush wasn’t quite so large or imposing.

In the sliver of moonlight they watched a flash of bright contrasting green flicker through the earthy colored brush. There, in the clearing where the buck had once stood was now the sleek figure of a green utahraptor. The sight of which caused F-23’s eyes to narrow and pin, of course. Prototype. The one dinosaur that filled F-23 with a profound hatred, a hatred which had lasted even through their foggy memories and blank spaces. Once, the vibrant green raptor had hunted F-23. Back when they had been small and weak, pathetic in the big cold laboratory which had once dwarfed them. But now F-23 was older, stronger… A predator formed by the rough environment of the labs, learning to hunt and survive in the darkness of the basement levels.

Now, their padded feet moved silently over the earth once more. The surrounding underbrush and darkness obscuring their frame from immediate view, if they kept silent then their prey would be none the wiser. Foliage and rain softened earth brushed against their scales, smearing water along their sides and mud on their claws as they stalked through the woods. Prototype stood firmly in their path, head lowered to sniff at the buck’s trail. Perhaps she had been hunting the buck as well, little did she know that she had just become the hunted.

Each step closer was silent. Pausing whenever the sleek green head lifted to observe her surroundings-
She paused. Eyes of molten gold were locked on theirs. She had seen them.

Now or never.

F-23 rose from their crouched position and launched themself forward at the utahraptor who was easily dwarfed by F-23’s sheer mass. Their large body crashed through the brush and trees, snapping branches and crushing plant life easily beneath their body.

Prototype was already on the move, dodging nimbly through the trees and shrubbery. However, they were in F-23’s territory in the dead of the night. F-23 had the home court advantage here, an apex predator who was accustomed to the dark in their home territory. They veered off to the side and rushed on, following a deer path they knew would cut off Protype.

The acrocanthosaurus covered ground startlingly fast, moving through the dense trees with thundering steps in flashes of brown and tan. However Prototype had something F-23 distinctly lacked, mobility born from her small size. F-23 crashed through the trees, emerging just where they expected–
Their jaws snapped just, just barely missing Prototype by a few inches. The response was instant, a hiss and a flash of claws across their muzzle before she was darting off into the darkness and dense trees. The raptor probably thought they'd lose her amongst the woods, however she failed to account for their proficiency under the stars.

The hunt was on. A slow breath in and slow breath out rustled the leaves in front of them. F-23 could be patient… They prowled through the forest, following the panicked trail left behind by Prototype.

She could run, but she couldn't hide from their keen senses.

How dare she trespass on their territory and think she wouldn't be prey? This was a territory they had been meticulously preparing for their mate and future hatchlings.

Truly. She'd make a far better meal for their beloved than the young buck they had been trailing behind. Nothing better than the taste of vengeance against the one who had hunted them when they were small…

So they listened and they stalked… Listening to the soft panting of panicked breathing, the hold of breath that suggested Prototype was listening to her surroundings. Then the relieved exhale.

Good. She hadn't picked up on their scent, likely covered by the fresh mud and rain. The damp weather was in F-23’s favor then, for now at least… Though they knew better than to rely on it, rain and mud could easily turn this forest into dangerous territory for something as large as themself. However, this logic also applied to the more poorly suited Prototype. Her lack of knowledge of the territory was already proving dangerous to herself.

They followed her along the well worn migration trail she had decided to follow, they stalked her through thick brush and tilting trees. Until… She slipped.
There. That was the opening.
Once more F-23 lurched forward, now having the element of surprise. Her jaws snapped shut just as Prototype rolled away from their dangerous teeth.
Again-
F-23’s massive move swung around, massive jaws reaching for Prototype’s tail as the smaller raptor frantically scrambled away. Not quick enough though. Their jaws secured around her tail and they jerked their body upwards, sending the small raptor flying through the air. They were intending on slamming her down and stunning her-

However, her scales which had been slickened by mud slipped from between their sharp teeth. As soon as she hit the ground, she was running with F-23 in hot pursuit. There would be no more stalking, this was now a chase. The hunter versus hunted was an old song and dance between them, however now the scales had been flipped.

F-23 thundered after Prototype, the pads of her feet no longer silencing her steps as she crashed through brush and broke branches in pursuit of her target. Just a little closer-
Almost-

Prototype slipped between two rocks, rocks that served as an entrance to a small cave. An entrance that F-23 was far too large to fit into-

Snarling they wedged their face into the gap, snapping their jaws fruitlessly at the air hoping to catch even a nip of Prototype.
Looks like this hunt failed… But perhaps the next one wouldn’t…