Jurassic War

Twenty-Four

Dawson caught up with his troopers. He trotted near the end of the line, left oblique to the machine gunners.

Private Fuller advanced with the Browning Automatic Rifle, then Bishop with his BAR, followed by Private First Class Simmons with a Thompson, spitting .45 caliber shells. Private Meserve, a rifleman, targeted enemy soldiers while under cover of heavy fire from his comrades.

The enemy soldiers manning the Lewis gun couldn’t swing it around in time. Bishop charged, firing non-stop. Japanese soldiers were riddled all over. Bullets struck them in the chest, shoulders, and thighs.

Everyone handling the deadly machinegun now lay on the ground, writhing in agony.

Sighting the M1 on soldiers down the line, Dawson pecked off the enemy one at a time, sharpshooting with deadly aim. Kill shots dropped them to the ground.

The flank had broken. Now, the small marine unit advanced toward the center machinegun nest. And the larger contingency led by Staff Sergeant Wilson pressed on the other flank and center position.

Gunfire erupted from the marines dug into the downhill slope. Heavy automatic weapons riddled the enemy position. Both remaining Lewis guns directed return fire at Staff Sergeant Wilson’s position. A warrant officer supervised one machine gunner and a chubby private led the other. Neither side took many casualties and the oppenents did not advance on each other. A stalemate.

Dawson pressed ahead of his troopers, continuing to make each shot count. Bishop followed at left oblique, while Fuller took up a position on his right, advancing in a wedge formation. Other members of the unit fanned out from the machine gunners.

“Move ahead!” Dawson screamed over the cacophony of firearms.

The Japanese troops were caught in a crossfire. And then, the center Lewis gun spun around to face them. The entire fire team would be taken down. Swift movement bringing the gun around twisted the belt. The gunner got off a few rounds and the deadly weapon jammed.

A marine on the outside of the formation dropped from a wild shot to his thigh.

“Get down!” screamed Dawson.

Everyone hit the dirt. Dawson dove onto his stomach, landing with his rifle in front so he could quickly shoulder the M1. He took a deep breath, aimed, and fired.

The enemy machine gunner fell with blood gushing from his neck. He expelled his last breath, kicking. Another enemy soldier took his place at the Lewis gun, while an assistant gunner finished straightening the ammunition belt.

A hopeless situation. Dawson thought of Mary and tapped the metal tin in his breast pocket, housing his final letter to her.

The battle scene darkened as storm clouds drifted in front of the moon. A clap of thunder. Then a deluge poured from the sky. Heavy rain puddled the lane and quickly saturated the ground, making it too muddy for sudden movements. Combatants on both sides slipped and lost their balance; some fell into the sludge and floundered to stay in the fight.

Just as the Lewis gun was set to go, thrashing emanated from the far side of the road. Trees and shrubbery shook violently. A limb snapped.

A moment later, a stout dinosaur emerged from the jungle. It had thick horns above its eyes, and the beast measured about eight yards from nose to tip of its tail. It weighed over a ton. But the creature was swift. It ran into the road and plied toward the center of the enemy defense.

The Lewis gun spun and rattled off rounds at the approaching dinosaur. It roared and picked up its pace.

Dawson got to his feet, waving his men to break further to the left and close upon the vulnerable enemy center position. The machine gunner continued to fire away at the beast, with the hand grips vibrating, and the barrel jouncing up and down.

Bullets seemed to ping off the thick hide without consequence.

Approaching the machinegun nest, the dinosaur lowered its head and charged into the soldiers, knocking them over like bowling pins. It reached the berm and spun around. The creature’s tail swatted three infantrymen and sent them hurling. They were tossed downhill toward the marines who opened fire on them.

The Carnotaurus snapped at a soldier trying to get away. Arms flailing as the man slipped on mud, the beast stretched out its neck and latched onto the man. With a shake of the head and slight tug, the man’s arm tore off his body. Blood pumped from the cleaved opening and spurted into the air. He screamed in torment, as the cascading rain and blood doused his face, like anointing him to rid the soldier of the dangerous creature. But the beast was spurred on by the exsanguination.

It took a step closer to the teetering man. The ground trembled. Vibrations reverberated down the lane. Ratcheting its head around, the Carnotaurus glanced back toward the opening in the brush where it had entered the roadway, as if looking for something. And then, it reached down and snatched the wounded man from the ground. Latching onto the soldier, the creature made a break down the muddy lane, moving hastily around the back of the transport.

Something enormous burst from the jungle and stomped onto the roadway. A massive dinosaur roared, sounding its presence. Rain cascaded over its thick green hide, standing twelve feet tall at the hips and measuring forty feet from the tip of its nose to the end of its tail. A piece of cloth was wedged between two front teeth. The olive drab scrap of Raider uniform. Dawson realized the unit landing on the eastern side of the island had not encountered Imperial troops, but rather met the creature standing before them. It had traversed the island swiftly.

The Tyrannosaurus ran after the smaller dinosaur, chasing it down the lane. It closed the distance in a few massive strides. By the time the Carnotaurus reached the truck’s front end, the larger beast had caught up to its prey.

Fleeing with its spoils, the Carnotaurus seemed to be protecting the carcass from the larger predator. It ducked its head low, placing its neck and body between the corpse and the larger dinosaur. Dawson understood the T-Rex meant to have the lesser beast and wasn’t concerned with the tasty morsel clamped in its maw.

It lowered its massive head and bucked into the side of the Carnotaurus. The blow sent the smaller dinosaur reeling into the transport. The truck teetered up on its left wheels, then jostled back down with a thump. Mud sprayed everywhere.

Then, the Tyrannosaurus repeated the same tactic, knocking the smaller dinosaur into the truck again and again. Without losing its hold on the soldier, the Carnotaurus struggled to its feet and squirmed along the transport, desperately trying to escape. Another blow missed the Carnotaurus and jolted the truck high into the air.

Clanking steel resounded from the undercarriage. It dropped heavily to the ground and the suspension gave a metallic creak. The vehicle sunk into the mud. Lewis guns rattled bullets at the dinosaurs and riddled the truck. A rear tire exploded, and the truck sat askew in the gunk.

The Carnotaurus didn’t flee from its attacker. Instead, the bull wormed loose and turned to face the hulking carnivore. Never taking its eyes off the T-Rex, it flung the booty to the side to collect later. And then, it scraped the earth with a massive rear claw and snorted a warning. The bull lowered its head and charged the gigantic meat-eater.

Its head collided with the Tyrannosaurus and knocked it back a few feet, sending it reeling into the battered truck. The bull had gotten underneath the larger dinosaur and kept pushing it off balance. Stumbling back with a foot off the ground, the T-Rex leaned forward and bit into the bull’s back. Enormous teeth dug into the Carnotaurus’s hide, tearing into thick skin, peeling off layers of glistening meat. The bull yowled in pain.

Agony and rage incited the smaller beast. It pushed harder, driving the Tyrannosaurus upright, then tumbling it over onto its side. The massive creature landed on the roadway with a tenacious wallop. It squirmed to right itself, but the bull was at its underbelly.

The Carnotaurus bit into the softer flesh and violently jerked its head, cleaving an opening in the king of the jungle. Flailing madly to right itself, the T-Rex only served to tear the wound open wider.

Caterwauling pierced the night as the soldiers watched in awe. Firearms shooting had ceased, replaced by the screeching cries of the vanquished. The Carnotaurus latched onto entrails and backpedaled, sealing the assailant’s doom. As the bull disemboweled the fierce predator, the release of tension on the fallen creature’s underside allowed it to scramble onto its feet. The T-Rex stumbled.

An unsteady gait made pursuit difficult. It roared in fury.

Still, it towered over the other dinosaur. The Carnotaurus backed away, holding links of the larger beast’s viscera clamped tightly in its mouth. Gnashing its teeth caused the intestines to sever. Entrails split; a horrid stench permeated the damp air, and excreta slopped to the ground. But the cord was cut, and the Tyrannosaurus had broken loose.

It made two swift strides and bit the Carnotaurus on the back of the neck.

The bull shook to free itself of the Tyrannosaurus’s hold, but the larger creature locked its grip even tighter, clamping on the thick neck, while compressing its jaws. A squeal belched from the bull, nothing more. Clenching the bull’s neck, the Tyrannosaurus squeezed with all its might, until a loud snap resounded from the carnage. And then, the Carnotaurus went limp, dropping to the ground with a heavy thud.

The victor roared with its nose pointed to the sky. Rain poured over the creature and puddled in the roadway. It leaned over and tore a bite of flesh from the dead bull. Eating ravenously, the T-Rex fed like it was its last meal. Death lurked over the desolate lane.

Soldiers fired the Lewis guns, attempting to drive the beast away.

Efforts to send the beast into flight all failed miserably.

The creature lifted its head from the hefty carcass and sniffed. Its nostrils picked up a scent, almost as though it were remembering the smell. An odor of humankind.

It turned to face the volley of bullets and stomped toward the center Lewis gun.

Bullets dug into the dinosaur’s thick hide. It roared with fury and kept advancing toward the deadly gun. Soldiers scattered, but the machine gunner kept firing away. The T-Rex opened its massive jaws and snapped them onto the lone soldier. His screams were muffled by the brute’s muzzle.

Picking the man from the machinegun nest, the Tyrannosaurus wheeled around, while latching a tighter grip onto his prize.

The soldier kicked and squirmed to free himself from the creature’s grasp. It squeezed, and cracking emitted from its jaws. Blood oozed from its mouth. The thrashing lessened until the man’s legs dangled, limp from the predator’s maw.

Dawson gasped at the awful demise.

The T-Rex tilted its head back and gobbled the soldier down its gullet. Rain danced over the colossal skull and pelted its eyes. Shaking its head, the beast seemed to gather itself.

And something else; it appeared satisfied, as if savoring the fare.

Sniffing the air, the Tyrannosaurus picked up a pleasant aroma. Its mouth cracked open, like a sinister smile. The creature whetted its appetite, tasting the scent of its next delicacy.

The T-Rex snapped its head to the left and locked onto its next victim.