Side Quest- Savannah!

The open savannah of the islands was a harsh place to live. The lack of green foliage in the hotter months made it almost impossible for large herbivores to survive off it alone, and the rarity of shade and clean water made the heats almost unbearable. But the few creatures who had adapted to survive in the harsh area had done so magnificently.

A warthog grunted as it walked across the dry grass, flicking its ears backwards at the yip of a nearby coyote. Still, it paid the creature no mind and instead made its way up to a nearby water hole. Small and secluded, it was the perfect place to drink- and the perfect spot for an ambush. Head bowed as it drank, the warthog was careful to keep on alert- ready for any sound that was out of place. It came in the form of a simple misplaced step- one too loud crack from a dry piece of grass, and the warthog was gone.

Angry screeches and roars followed, Katydid bursting out of the grass he had been covering in and taking off after the warthog at full speed. At his side ran Leos- the large carnosaurus was much faster than the cryolophosaurus, but for whatever reason did not pull ahead. Instead the two ran side by side, kicking dust up in their wake as they chased down the warthog. Miles of grass stretched by as they ran- the scenery almost unchanging, the blue sky and sun-bleached grass a consistent.

This consistency was broken as they approached something in the distance- a bit of green, forecasting the end of the savannah and beginning of a forest. The warthog was almost there- once within the forest, its smaller form had a better chance of escape from the huge carnivores.

But there was a third member of this hunting party- and it already had a good idea of the warthogs plan. Teeth snapped from the foliage as the warthog passed by- only missing when the creature managed to dance out of the way just in time and take off down a new path.

Thor emerged from the foliage grumply, shaking grass off of feathers. Their plan of an ambush worked sometimes, and failed other times. Seems this time it was a failure. Katydid and Leos trotted up to him, taking a moment to catch their breaths now that the chase was over. “Hey, it's ok.” Katydid attempted to soothe the larger carnivore. “There’s always more- and that warthog wouldn’t have fed all of us anyways.”

Thor huffed, shaking his feathers out as he elected not to answer. Sure, it wouldn’t have fed all of them, but as the biggest Thor had a responsibility to keep the rest of his pack fed. Food was hard enough to find in the savannah- harder when you happened to be the biggest thing around.

Leos scoffed a bit. “Words won’t fill us.” He kicked at a nearby rock, grumbling his frustrations into the air. Thor sighed sadly. Despite the fact that Thor was the biggest member of the group, he was not the one with the fastest metabolism. That belonged to Leos- the carnotaurus’s naturally fast and slim nature made it so he required a lot of energy just to reach top speed. Every failed hunt was a blow to him.

Katydid opened his mouth, surely about to say something sympathetic- when a loud squeal rang out from within the thicket. The three froze- the sharp scent of blood filling the air, coming from the direction the boar had ran. Slowly the trio crept forward, entering into the thicket- interest reawoken by the promise of possible food- if they could get past whatever had killed it.

The thicket was uncomfortably cramped, causing Thor to huff uncomfortably as leaves tangled in his feathers and slithered against his sides. They did not have to walk far to find their target- Katydid letting out a gasp of horror as it came into view.

The warthog from earlier was dead- blood pooling across the ground, staining the grass. But where the trio may have expected to see a rival with its corpse, instead stood a plant. Tall and towering, smelling sickly sweet in a way that was sickening. The warthog was tangled in countless thorny vines, suspended in mid-air and ripped into. Katydid gagged, staggering back into Leos- who seemed quite ill himself. “Wh-what is that?”

Thor growled, low in deep as a primal disgust came over him. “The rumors passersby spoke of… invaders, bringing plants that seeded doom. It does not belong here.” The acrocanthosaurus peeled back his lips, exposing his teeth to the air. He had been born in the labs. He had witnessed many twisted by humans long gone- and they had no right to be here too.

“How do we even take it down?” Leos asked, gaze calculating. “It’s as big as you are- and it’s… well. A plant.”

“It is not like prey.” Thor responded. “It cannot move. While it looks scary, plants do not react the same as we do. It will likely not attack until we land the first blow. Aim to kill quickly.” The three spread out across the cramped area, Thor taking up most of the room. Leos circled to the other side, leaving Katydid to crouch between them.

“Ready?” The cryolophosaurus called out, snapping at the air in nervous anticipation. The two others nodded. “Go!”

Thor reached the plant first- teeth sinking into its main stalk, attempting to grab it’s attention. The plant could not scream, but it did react- vines lashed into Thor, sharp vines cutting and pulling in painful ways. The carnivore grunted, but held on tight. 

Leos was quick to join in, grabbing and yanking as many vines as he could. Katydid dove in on the other side, quickly pulling the warthogs body free and to the side. With a few last thrashing motions, the plant stilled. Still, that wasn’t good enough. Thor pulled until the stalk split, and the plant could no longer bear its own weight. The three stood, panting and covered in plant goo.

“At least we got food out of this.” Leos sighed as he took notice of the warthog, walking over to it to take his share (and more, but Thor would not hold it against him.) Katydid worried.

“Where did that thing even come from?” The ginger cryolophosaurus nervously looked at the dead plant, stepping back. “Are there more?”

Thor shrugged, gagging to get rid of the plant sap in his mouth. “Don’t know. Don’t care. We stay in the savannah for a reason. Let’s hurry back- I don't want to stay here any longer than I need to.” The other two agreed, and quickly, they were gone. Some questions were not worth what they gave- and this was not their quest.