Volume 7: Copal

Issue 7: Rapids

Florian Reyes Honeywell

By Roach

The huge, serrated mouth of the Dakotaraptor opened before me, showing off rows of teeth that still had pieces of flesh caught in between them. Its breath reeked of stale rot; it smelled like death. My mind flashed back to the Purgatorius’ last moments.

Before I could react, my shirt constricted around my throat. I felt someone’s fingertips brush against my neck, then a hand promptly tugged at the collar of my shirt and pulled me backwards.

Just in time to yank me away from the Dakotaraptor’s mouth. A hair away from my nose, its large jaws clamped shut with a forceful clapping noise.

The grip on my shirt loosened. I twisted around, scrambling to keep my balance. As I turned away from the raptor, I came face to face with Hannah. I realized that it was her hand that had pulled me away from the raptor’s lunge.

I didn’t have time to process what had just happened, let alone thank her, before we all turned on our heels. We ran without hesitation. While the Dakotaraptor had been greeted by surprised shrieks at first, our small group now wordlessly sprinted through the trees.

I ran just behind Hannah, who maneuvered the woods with a steady pace—leaping over roots and zigzagging around the trunks. At the same time, my classmates’ footsteps thumped on the ground ahead of us. While I could hear their desperate heaves for air, the Dakotaraptor whizzed through the ferns behind me.

No, that wasn’t quite right. Amidst the rustling of leaves and fronds, I could distinguish another set of footsteps. Its rhythm followed the first.

I remembered back to Archean’s words. He had been talking about the Acheroraptors, but even so, I couldn’t help but come back to what he said as another snarl sounded behind us.

You know, if we see one right now, I bet there’s a whole pack we can’t see.

I didn’t look back; it would only slow me down. And, right now, every second mattered. Instead, I focused on Hannah as her swift steps carried her over the terrain in front of me. I clumsily mimicked her turns and leaps, following the path she carved out.

As we continued to run, I reached out with my pheromones—trying to collect the swarm once more. If I could wield them against the raptors, it might be just enough of a surprise to slow them down. But the bees only murmured restlessly within me, fluttering their wings in a dizzy disorientation.

Then, a deep snarl sounded overhead. Needles drizzled from the redwood canopy, followed by a whooshing noise.

I glanced up. From the branches above, a set of yellow eyes locked onto me. I instantly recognized the Dakotaraptor; it was the one with a white head, just like a bald eagle. Its pupils dilated when I met its gaze.

Then, the Dakotaraptor dropped down.

It slowed its fall with a flap of its under-developed wings. Lucy and Amber screamed ahead of me—coming to a halt as the raptor landed in front of them. For an elusive moment, it stood still, massaging the earth with its talons.

Now—caught between the two raptors behind and the one in front—our group had momentarily stopped.

But, to my surprise, the raptors had slowed down as well. As they exchanged a few snarls and chirps, I got the impression that they were sizing us up. Based on what Archean had said, it sounded like their only live prey had been Purgatorius. While they were still bigger than any of us, it occurred to me that we might be their first real encounter with a mammal larger than a squirrel.

But, if there had been any hesitation on their part, it rapidly melted away as the white-headed Dakotaraptor took a jerking step toward us. The raptor tossed its head from side to side, snapping viciously at the air. The other two snarled as they echoed its movement, one lashing out with its claws at a target that wasn’t there. At the same time, another wave of nausea rolled through me, and I reigned in the swarm.

Maybe that was what had aided us so far. Whatever was affecting the swarm, the Triceratops—whatever that noise the Queen described had to do with it… It was getting to the Dakotaraptors, too. Making them more aggressive, but less controlled. Maybe they weren’t operating at full capacity—maybe we could use that somehow… But without the swarm, what could I do?

I sought out Camilo and Amber’s gaze, as if somehow—if only we had a minute—we could come up with something. Another stupid plan to get out of this, just like we always did. But, when I looked at them, they seemed to stare right through me—their eyes wide in a numb horror.

Then, it dawned on me: were they waiting for me to wield the swarm?

A loud shout interrupted my thoughts. Daniel let out a bellow. There were no words, just uninterrupted shrieking as he picked up a thick stick from the ground. He started flailing it aimlessly around, screaming unintelligibly at the Dakotaraptors. They jerked away from the branch, shrinking back in surprise.

Daniel, seemingly having run out of air, stopped shouting. He sucked a quick breath in, before saying, “This way!” Then, with one last swing, he chucked the stick at a Dakotaraptor with brown plumage. The raptor backed away, fanning out its wings as if to make itself appear bigger—revealing iridescent wingtips, like a magpie.

We all turned and ran after Daniel. His maneuver had surprised the raptors just enough to give us a head start, but it didn’t take long before they pursued us once again. They were too fast for us to win in a race, and I knew it was only a matter of time before they caught up with us. I had to do something. But the swarm continued to buzz with unease; my grasp on them still clumsy and unreliable.

The sound of rushing water grew ahead. About a stone’s throw in front of us, a wide river emerged—cutting through the forest. With nowhere else to turn, we continued to run; away from the raptors, toward the rapids.

Daniel reached the riverbank first. For a moment, he stopped and looked both ways—almost as if he were about to cross a road. But he didn’t wait long before leaping into the air, landing on a rock peeking through the surface. Rushing water parted around its jagged shape.

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The rest of us scrambled to the riverside. The river was slightly wider than a highway, and its steady rush of water splashed against the large rocks scattered throughout the channel. Although the river itself didn’t seem too deep, the water flowed with a vigorous velocity—powerful enough to sweep away an unsuspecting person…

Or, hopefully, a raptor.

Daniel skipped across the next few rocks, steadying himself between each landing. “Come on!” he yelled. “We gotta go.”

Without hesitation, Amber jumped after him. She leaped into the air with the same ease as during her volleyball matches. Lucy, Jay, and Camilo followed suit, while Hannah and I made up the back of the group.

As I waited for Hannah to make the next leap, I glanced over my shoulder. The trio of raptors now emerged from the treeline. Although they slowed down at the sight of water, they still snapped at the air and flashed their teeth at me.

I turned back to the river, and made my first jump. With shaky footing, I landed on top of the closest rock. While water had made the stony surface slippery, its jagged texture helped me regain my balance.

As I launched myself to the next rock, it occurred to me that the river could be connected to the delta we had crossed through when we first entered the Hell Creek Experience. If we followed it, could we make our way back? Or, at the very least, find help? But which way?

As the swarm’s buzz rippled through me, a more pressing question quickly overshadowed any other thoughts. How good were raptors at swimming?

I jumped onto the next rock, and then the next. Ahead, Daniel and Amber were a quarter of the way from reaching the other side, while the others had made it about halfway across. When I looked back again, the Dakotaraptors arrived at the riverbank. While the rush of the current muted their growls, the water didn’t seem to have deterred them just yet. They paced through the riparian growth, watching over us as we jumped between the rocks—as if measuring the distance across.

The white-headed raptor launched itself forward. It extended its wings, which spanned well over half the length of my body. While too heavy to fly properly, its feathers still caught enough air to guide it across the water. The raptor reached out its sickle-shaped talons toward the closest rock. But, just as it was about to make its landing, a splash of water engulfed its body.

The raptor fell into the river. While shrieking and flapping its wings uselessly, the current dragged its body downstream. But the river hadn’t carried the raptor far before it managed to claw its way through the horsetails, scrambling back up on land. Now that the water had flattened its feathers against its skin, it suddenly looked smaller. Still bigger than any of us, but smaller all the same.

But not any less threatening. The raptor tossed its head back and forth, snarling as it shook its dripping body.

If I hadn’t been familiar with Camilo’s powers, I wasn’t sure I would have noticed the discrepancy. But, where I thought there had been a rock—which the Dakotaraptor had seemed to be thinking as well—there was now nothing but water. An illusion, I realized. And the raptor had, quite literally, fallen for it.

I turned to look at Camilo. A few rocks ahead of me, he glanced back. He gave me a slight nod—as if acknowledging my suspicion—then proceeded to stare past me. I followed his gaze to the riverbank.

Something rustled between the cattails. Then, a mousy snout peeked out from the vegetation. The pointed nose sniffed the air before its head popped up. A Purgatorius, I realized. The rat-sized creature looked exactly how I remembered the Purgatorius from before. Too exactly, even.

At this point, the soaked Dakotaraptor had returned to its companions. The trio of raptors still appeared unsettled, swinging their heads back and forth while lashing out their tails. One even snapped at another, and—in a flurry of feathers—a small fight broke out. But, as quickly as it began, their battle ended. The raptor’s attention shifted from each other to the Purgatorius as it scurried right past them. Its tiny body shot in between the redwoods.

And, to my relief, the raptors turned and gave chase. I couldn’t help but grin as their tails vanished into the darkness of the trees. Maybe the Purgatorius had been Camilo’s work, too, I wasn’t sure—but hopefully it would help them forget about us.

I turned back, preparing myself to jump onto the next rock. But, as I did, a scream followed by a splash stopped me in my tracks. The rock where Camilo had been standing was now empty. At the same time, a shape—obscured by white water—flailed underneath the surface. Camilo’s head bobbed at the surface, gasping for air.

I froze up. My first instinct was to jump in after my friend. Then, a second, more pressing instinct quickly overruled this.

The swarm’s.

The swarm thrummed and writhed within me while Camilo struggled against the current. Water swept him downstream, smashing his body into another rock. Although he only gurgled in response, the impact looked incredibly painful.

I looked around, trying to figure out the quickest path to him. But—with my classmates already occupying the rocks around me—there was no easy way to Camilo unless I dived in.

Except, I couldn’t swim. Whatever was going on in Hell Creek, it had rendered my control over the swarm near useless. Back at the pool, I had been able to mute their panic by staying in the shallows and keeping my cool. But, if I stepped into water now, I knew there was no way I could stay in control for any longer.

It all had happened in a matter of seconds, and I could see a similar sense of panic spread between my classmates.

As I froze up—torn between diving in and watching the current wash my friend away—Camilo wrapped his arms around the rock, clinging onto its slippery surface. While he gasped for air, my classmates set into motion. By now, Daniel had made it to the other side, with Amber close behind. But, instead of following him to land, she now backtracked—leaping over a set of rocks, not stopping until she was within reach of Camilo.

At the same time, Jay skipped over a couple of rocks to get close to him. Their momentum took me by surprise, and—within moments—both Amber and Jay stood over Camilo. There was a brief pause, as if they hadn’t thought further ahead than getting to Camilo and were now deliberating what to do next. While they looked at each other, the water continued to tug at Camilo’s body. “Take… your… time,” Camilo managed in between gasps for air.

At this, Amber and Jay snapped out of any indecision. Together, they pulled him up by the shoulders. To reach him, they leaned sort of awkwardly over the water—which was made no less awkward by the two side-eying each other. But, through a collaborative heave, they managed to pull Camilo up onto rock. Soaking wet, he slowly stacked his feet underneath himself.

“Thank you, guys,” Camilo murmured, staring down at the water.

“Don’t ever do that again,” Amber said. Although her tone was harsh, there was also something else in it. Relief.

“I’ll try,” he replied sheepishly.

But Jay didn’t say anything. Instead, they joined Lucy, starting to make their way to the other side. Camilo watched after them, until a shout grabbed his attention.

“Bro! Are you okay?” Daniel yelled from the riverbank. He held onto a large stick—which I realized he must have picked up so he could try to get to Camilo. Camilo only mumbled something inaudible in response.

I glanced back one more time, just to make sure that the Dakotaraptors really were gone. There was no sign of them on the riverbank; only the horsetails wavered in the wind.

Now, with less urgency, we made our way to the other side of the river. Once we were all there, I looked between my classmates’ tired faces. Redwood needles had gotten tangled into Amber’s hair, Camilo was dripping wet, and branches had left cuts on the arms and ankles of those who were wearing T-shirts or shorts.

I looked up and down the river, searching for anything familiar. But, for as far as I could see, there was nothing but trees.

There were a few moments of dead silence as we all surveyed our surroundings, interrupted only by the sounds of distant animals as the forest pressed in on us. Jay was the first to say what everyone was thinking.

“Where the fuck are we?” they asked.