A few weeks have passed since we last met with the little Rex, and since then, he and the Giant Spino have stuck around each other quite a bit. Most of the babies have come and gone with their families, but it was clear this little Rex wasn't born at the same time as the rest of his clutch, and was alone.

The Spino didn't seem to mind the company though, and he even looked to enjoy having the little guy around. Lazy as he was, even he couldn't help but to egg on the young Rex's games and play along.

It helped break up the monotony of his usually stagnant life.

Like now, he was currently playing with his sail, climbing the ridges to get higher and view the world around them. He saw plenty of creatures, so many far different than the ones from mere weeks ago.

Oh yeah, and he's grown a bit.

He's about four feet in length now, one more than when he was born at! Sure it wasn't much, but progress is progress yeah?

Moving from that, he decided to hop off the Spino's back and run around a bit, working off some of that energy he was holding since he woke up. He's young and a runner, so he has to burn it off somehow yeah?

Plus, he was getting kinda hungry too, so he had to find something to hunt. Luckily this place was full of creatures to try and tackle, so he started his search, sticking to taller grasses to stay out of sight.

Several things passed him by, all of which a bit too big to take on at his size. If he wanted food, he would need a smaller creature to wrestle with, nothing big or he could even die trying to even nibble it.

...

There!

A small creature, only a little smaller than him, started walking on by a few bushes past. It had a weird head shape, with a sharp beak and spike jutting out it's cheeks.

To us, we would know it as a species of Psittacosaurus.

The little Rex crept up as it walked by, watching it's eyes to see wherever it would be looking at next. It was observing it's surroundings as anything smart would be, only issue is that it didn't look close enough when factoring the bush ahead of it.

The little Rex darted out, the rustling catching the Psittaco's ears as it looked dead on to the approaching predator. With how close he was, it reared up in a taller posture, trying to scare him off by appearing bigger.

Little Rex was too smart for that.

With it raising up, he bent down and dove right at it, his jaw finding place around it's neck as both fell to the floor. The Psittaco was trying to kick him off with it's surprisingly powerful back legs, but was making little good progress with his mouth locked around it's neck like that.

Blood was seeping out of the wound, and it was quickly losing air from the squeezed and soon to be crushed windpipe. It's kicks grew more powerful and desperate, which worked against it as it moved the Rex further away, tearing apart it's flesh and body even more.

It wasn't long from both that and the kicking before the Psittaco sealed it's own fate by getting one well placed kick on the Rex's chest, sending him back enough to tear it's throat open. It was suffocating to death now, and the Rex only had to bide his time for the meal to finally settle and cease.

One good hit is all it takes sometimes, and the little Rex knew that well. One well placed attack and either he or his foe are dead, so it's best to find that opportunity whenever you can.

This Psittaco didn't learn that early, and so, it costed it. Now...time to eat.
—————

Wow...that thing was filling.

The little Rex hobbled on with a full belly, proud of his achievement in hunting something roughly his size. He was proud of himself and thought he was going all well in the world, and in fairness, he was.

Not every Rex gets to befriend a massive Spino after all.

His dopey little steps carried him off towards the forest, wanting to explore the world a bit more and get use to traveling on his own. He knew he would grow up and probably have to leave the Spino behind, so he's getting use to things on his own time.

It was once again getting darker thanks to the leaves above, the trees providing ample coverage for anyone seeking refuge from the heat of the day. Someone like him needed cover like this, once he gets big and strong that is, seeing as he's probably gonna be huge.

Present day first, and firstly, to do his business.

After a minute or two of it, he buried what he made and continued on, feeling much better and ready to travel more. The smells of the forest and all creatures that have travelled through tickled his nose, giving him insight into the world he would never have gotten with just his eyes.

He can smell the giants off yonder, one's with their young and their bellies full of greens and grasses. He can smell the creatures above, Pterosaurs of all kinds flying around with prey in their beaks and young flapping at their side.

He also caught wind of something...familiar.

...

His mind went to work, and almost instantly, he realized what that scent was. There was only one thing it could have been, seeing as he never knew that scent yet automatically knew it's origin.

It was like his own...it's one of his family.

His little feet immediately took off, sprinting in the direction of the smell he caught wind of. There was no way it couldn't have been anything else, it had to be someone related to him!

Be it his parents or siblings, it doesn't matter to him, all that matters was that family was nearby.

He continued through bushes and branches aplenty, even jumping over and around other creatures smaller than him hiding in these places. Several squeaks and caws of surprise greeted his ears each time, but he couldn't care less compared to the real prize ahead.

The smell grew stronger now, his heart growing quicker in his chest at the mere prospect of finally finding one of his own kind here. Though on the wind he also picked up another scent, one much more familiar.

He smelled blood.

'Yes...family is good at hunting already!'

He himself wasn't hungry anymore, but that doesn't mean he can't be happy for them finding food. Just ahead would be where they should be, and he's more than happy to finally breech these bush lines and meet someone related to himself.

That's when he broke through one more bush, and there...he found what he was looking for.

...

Lying on the ground, barely alive.

His heart almost stopped, seeing a Rex not much bigger than himself lying on the floor bleeding profusely from a single bite to their leg. It wasn't deep, it wasn't even that severe, but the bleeding simply wouldn't stop.

The Rex ahead slowly looked towards him, their eyes carefully looking over the tinier Rex's features and smelling his scent. It grew relaxed once it smelt his familiarity, but it also whined, fear in it's mind as it tried shooing away it's younger brother.

For what, he didn't know, but whatever was coming....he can hear it.

Somewhat faintly, there were leaves and bushes being pushed and moved around, slowly moving towards him and his sibling. He wanted to stay and help his sibling however he could, but even now, his mind knew the facts.

They will not survive much longer.

He gave his sibling, possibly the only one he'll meet here, a single nudge to the head as a farewell, before he retreated into the bushes to hide and wait. Whatever will be the thing to kill his family, he'll remember it's face...he'll kill it in vengeance sooner or later.

Some minutes pass as his sibling lost more blood, and is certainly going to die soon from that alone. The approaching sound grew even louder, as whatever it was is almost there and ready to feast.

A single clawed foot awkwardly pushed out of the bushes, and what followed was a long head, a forked tongue flicking out from it's mouth. A long trail of saliva hung from it's lips, the viscosity giving clearly away what all of this was.

It had venom, a hemorrhagic one that even from a single bite, could cause massive bleeding that never seems to end. It pulled more of it's body out, the long creature easily being bigger than both him and his sibling combined, with a tail as long as it's body...no, even longer.

Today, we would know this creature as Megalania.

It's eyes saw the downed Rex, one it crawled right over and observed. It was far bigger than his sibling was, his head alone bigger than even the large heads of his kind.

Once it got itself ahead of the young Rex, it snapped out in a lightning quick bite, latching onto it's face and making the nearly dead Rex croak in pain. The weak thrashes served to no avail, as the Megalania began it's feast.

The poor little Rex watched as the Megalania lifted his sibling up, slowly swallowing it down it's unnervingly malleable neck. It was somehow able to swallow them down despite the size, and unfortunately, they were still alive and thrashing as they disappeared down the Megalania's gullet.

The slight bloat in it's belly all the indication that the little Rex needed: His sibling is dead. There was no escaping that when they were as weak as they were, and if he weren't careful, that very well could be him next.

The Megalania's tongue flicked through the air again, always smelling out it's surroundings and searching either for something that could kill it or the next thing it can kill. Who knows what's happening behind those black and soulless eyes besides the Megalania itself.

Eventually, it slinked off into the bushes again, vanishing from the site and leaving naught but a pool of blood behind that belonged to the little Rex's deceased sibling. He backed out of the bush he hid in, coming to grips with the scene he witnessed.

Things die all the time here, it's the way of life, but we always fight to survive through to not be killed. Even then, he believed that his kind were all nigh unstoppable, the best of the best, the mightiest of all.

The Tyrant Kings.

Even at his age he has done miraculous things to creatures bigger than himself...but it's clear. He was lucky, and he was smart, those two things have saved him several times already, and unfortunately, his sibling wasn't so lucky.

Ah...and it's getting darker.

He has to head back to the river now, the Spino was probably curious on where his little buddy went by now. He started walking back at a calm pace, the darkening skies only helping fuel some predators from slumber to feast on a sleeping creature or two.

Crack!

...

The little Rex stopped entirely, turning to look over his shoulder to hopefully find nothing from that snapping sound. Behind him, he saw a single thing, and it was one thing he hoped he didn't have to see.

A single clawed foot, one that awkwardly pressed onwards.

The Megalania had returned, it had sniffed his scent out and tracked it to be an incredibly close dessert from it's original meal. It's head stuck out and exposed itself from the dark, it's long tongue flicking in his direction as it's beady eyes locked onto him.

The Megalania has spotted him, and now, he was in the most danger he's been in yet.

After all, this thing is built to kill creatures his size. He's smaller than it too, and so, he had but one option if he wanted to survive.

Run