Big Beetle

I was hungry. Of course, eating only the limited and scarce options would lead to that. There's pretty much nothing here in the Kela Scrub but sand and dead plants.

Oh, of course I could find a better place, even while still staying in the same biome, but there’s competition everywhere. All the places near rivers and streams are claimed, and protected by either herds of herbivores guarding their young or carnivores who would love to eat a lone Crylophosaurus hatchling as a light snack.

Jumping onto a dune, and ignoring the blistering heat immediately burning my feet, I survey my surroundings. It's the usual sand, clumps of dead and dying grass, the cacti that are abundant in this climate, rocks that have been worn smooth by storms of sand, and dried up streams that possibly used to have traces of moisture I'm used to. Trying to hear for prey, I only hear silence mixed with blowing of hot wind.I definitely had bad luck being hatched here.

My stomach grumbles, and I sigh in disappointment.

I've seen other dinosaurs of my age, and they pretty much always have bigger dinosaurs protecting them, even if they’re of a different species. But not me. Noooooooooo, I had to hatch all by myself in a partially destroyed burrow. And now I live off of small bugs and can only get a small drink of water when I'm sure no one is going to leap out of the bushes  and eat me.

I continue walking, looking around warily until I hear a slight sound. Tilting my head, I can hear the clacking of the mandibles of an insect. I quickly dart towards the clacking and...

There! A beetle!

It's one of those big horned beetles, but massive in comparison to the ones usually seen. It could definitely fill my empty stomach for a day or two. They are always crunchy and juicy. But even the small ones are hard to crunch though, and those horns might be able to do damage at this scale...

These beetles never seem to actually use those horns for defending against predators, but they're still scary. Even just imagining the damage makes my stomach feel uneasy.

But, killing this stupid thing could make me feel full for the first time since I got that rabbit...

I circle it slowly, my shadow falling across its shiny shell. The beetle clacks its mandibles louder, like it’s trying to tell me to back off and hunt something my own size.

I continue arguing with myself, trying to make a decision. I'm not really good at making decisions quickly, even while starving. I still criticize myself for letting a bird fly away before I could get it because I was too busy thinking of what the best way to catch it would be.

Finally, decide. I need to eat soon, or I'm sleeping hungry again. Screw the possible dangers!

I brace myself, before sprinting up to it, and biting it. Instead of the expected satisfying crunch that should come before the juicy delight, I feel one of my teeth break.

"OW!"

I put one of my claws in my mouth and feel one of my teeth is blunt now. Y;es, one of my teeth broke from biting this thing.

"Okay, now it's personal, little guy! Just let me crack your carapace and eat your juicy flesh!"

...Okay, maybe I can't really be angry at it for having defenses so it doesn't get hunted down and eaten by hungry dinosaurs like me. But I am still angry and still eating this big bug!

I poke the now retreating beetle, looking for a weak point. Luckily, it appears to rather run away than use its horns to get me.

Not being able to find a weak spot, I lie down to rest in the shade of a cactus nearby. This way, I can think while making sure the menace doesn't get away.

I think about how I could do this. Brute force won't work, as my throbbing tooth pain is still reminding me, so I need to do this in an intelligent manner instead.

I look at the crack I put in its carapace. I would have to bite it a lot more times to get to the good stuff, and that adds up to a lot of broken teeth. Teeth I'd prefer to leave unbroken, thank you very much.

So, I need a way to crack its tough exterior without using my teeth. Or find a weak spot.

I think about everything I know about this type of beetle. If it's just the size that's different, it should have the same weaknesses. It's not very fast, but it has a thick carapace that covers it everywhere except its underside.

Everywhere except its underside!

With this sudden realization, I quickly sprinted at it and shoved my head under it. Using all the muscles in my neck, I managed to flip it over. Score!

Before it could flip back, I bit its less heavily defended underbelly. After days with only eating small insects, the juices of this beetle tasted like a fresh rabbit in comparison.

While eating in bliss, one of the claws scratches me. The shock caused me to choke a little and

jump away.

“Guess you’re still alive? Jeez, I feel bad honestly…”

I shake the sting off and move in again, more careful this time. My teeth sink into the beetle’s flesh until the twitching stops. The struggle is over.

Minutes later, I lick my jaws clean, having devoured every edible bit of flesh. All that remains is the empty carapace, gleaming in the harsh sunlight.

“Not going to lie, this carapace is kinda cool. Imma keep it.”

I look around carefully. Dragging it will make me slow, an easy target. The sand is patterned with my tracks, making it easy for a larger predator to track me to my burrow. I'll have to clear my tracks while dragging the carapace.

After making up my plan, I fuss with the carapace, and after a short while finally manage to get a good grip on the shell, dragging it across the sand toward my burrow while clearing the tracks behind me with my own tail. The scraping sound is loud, but the thought of showing off my prize to no one but myself makes me grin.

The burrow is little more than a collapsed hole between rocks, but it’s mine. After pulling the shell inside and covering the entrance with sand and brush, I curl into a ball. My stomach is heavy and full for the first time in days.

For once, my belly doesn’t growl. I feel warm, heavy, and… safe, almost. The desert wind still howls above, rattling dead grass and scattering grains across the dunes, but in my little shelter, I can finally close my eyes.

I dream of rivers guarded by larger and more dangerous foes, of shadows of larger Crylophosauruses watching over me, of a place where food is easy and danger is far away. But when I wake, I’ll still be in the Kela Scrub, still small, still alone.

Still, tonight, I sleep with a full stomach. And that is enough.