Tommy and Maggie both rode on top of Ringo’s back while Antonio stubbornly refused to mount the animal. He walked alongside the pink one, trying to keep up with their long strides. Tommy noticed the fading light of the day as the sun set.

“Uh, oh, it's getting late...” He told the others.

“Wow, you’re right,” Maggie replied, glancing at the sky. “We might not make it back in time.”

“What do we do? Where are we supposed to sleep?”

Just then, the Thescelotitan slid them off its back, and the two dinosaurs walked into the bush. They returned with vast bundles of sticks, hay, and leaves, dropped them in a gigantic pile, and stomped all over them.

Tommy, Maggie, and Antonio figured out that they’re trying to build a small hut and helped. The team structured the wood and sticks together for the walls. They also used dirt and mud like glue, the hay for the roof and floorings, and leaves finished the curtain door of the shelter.

The finished product looked sturdy enough to keep them dry and warm for the night.

“Wow, that looks kind of cool,” Maggie said, impressed by the structure and how well it turned out.

“We can stay here for the night before heading out again to the bear village,” Tommy said, crossing his arms. “Man, I feel like I’m in a unique five five-star hotel again, like The Historic Summit Hotel!”

They continued having pleasant chats as the three headed inside the hut for the night. The dinosaurs curled up on the ground against the sides of the shelter.

The moon had appeared in the night sky, and the evening air and skies got darker and darker. Antonio, Maggie, and Tommy enjoyed a light snack and drank water from their jugs, all while talking late into the night.

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“Hey, Maggie, I was wondering,” Antonio said after swallowing his meal. “How do you know about those crystals? You seem to act like you know a lot more than you’re letting on...”

Maggie took a swig of water before replying. “Oh, is that so?”

“Yeah, I want to know what was up.”

“Well,” She explained, setting aside her jug on the ground. “There was this one time when my father had a rare day off.”

.-.-.-.

“My father had off from work, and he wanted to spend some time with me. My dad figured it would be an excellent opportunity to show me what he’d been working on for the past couple of years. So, he took me to his secret lab.

“There, I saw two other people in science robes. They were busy working on something. When they heard us coming, they both stopped briefly and walked over to check up on my father. I’m sure it was your uncle and his friend, and I still can’t remember what their names were.

‘Hey, Marshall, what are you doing here?’ The female asked.

‘Yeah, isn’t today your day off?’ The male added.

‘I know.’ My father replied. ‘But I wanted to take my little Magpie here to work to show her our progress.’

‘Is that so?’ The male scientist adjusted his glasses while the female bent her knees over to inspect me. Honestly, it freaked me out, and I hid behind my dad.

‘Aw, she looks so adorable.’ The female smiled at me.

“Something about her made me feel uneasy. Thankfully, the other scientist pulled her away and reminded her they needed to get back to work.

“I sighed in relief, but when I saw the others were getting back to their posts, I was curious and wanted to know what was going on. ‘So, what are you guys studying exactly?’ I asked.

‘It’s a surprise…’ My dad whispered.

That response just made me want to see it even more.

“The two scientists pressed some buttons on the control panel, and the walls opened up to reveal a glass box behind it. Inside the glass box, I saw floating unusual objects that were hovering as if they were in zero gravity.

‘Whoa, what are those?’ I asked, pointing at the objects behind the glass wall.

‘Those are crystals.’ My father explained. ‘We saw these on one of our expeditions and examined and analyze them.’

‘Is that so?’

‘Yes, and what we discovered so far is that they all seem to have some hint of elemental power.

“We’re checking to see which one does what and see if we can put some of these crystals to good use. Like, for example, if there are any teleport or life crystals. We’d be able to change the world using these!’

“I walked over to the glass to get a closer look at the crystals, placing my hand on the glass and pressing my face against it.

‘Amazing…’ I muttered softly.”