Countdown ✓

Shadow (29 days after)

"WHAT?"

She bumped me hard with her three-horns, shoving me away from Thunder and the group to a safe corner. She looked rather upset and worried at my first remark, and when in a safe distance at the edge of the new cave, she asked me to restate why I just declared.

"I think we should go back," I repeated. Her head seemed to boil, then cool down as she realized that her mood was a little too rough. She softly frowned and narrowed her eyes, moving towards me while bobbing her huge frilled skull in wonder of my askings.

"Why? Hasn't it done enough damage to us?" She proclaimed walking around to my backside, "Even so, it got closed up from the quake Shadow, I don't think-"

"I know it's open," I interrupted turning to face her glowing eyes, "It's got to be."

"How could you even be sure?"

"Because," I looked behind me, seeing the lying Deinonychus, "He's still alive, ain't he? So it's gotta." Stella looked towards the ground in thought, then dipped her head in slight acknowledgement.

"That's a good point. But what are you even going to do?"

I hated to answer these questions...

"I'm going to see if Amberclaw was telling the truth," I muttered. She almost choked again, which was a pretty valid sign of fear.

"Please don't tell me," Stella backed up, "You're going to touch it again, aren't you?"

"Well....er-"

"Shadow," Stella shook her head, "I know I'm not a carnivore or even a mother....which does sound weird....but I don't think this is a good idea. Hence, you could even end up like Whiteclaw!"

"I got in there once, and out in under a minute," I clicked, "Whiteclaw's snout was touching that for over an hour. He's trapped Stella, he has to be. That's probably the reason why he hasn't returned."

"Do you even remember what you saw in there?" Stella wondered. I felt a little image of my mother sink in the back of my mind, and even of my father, and grew deeply uncomfortable.

"No," I shook my head, feeling a slim lie flood through my words, "I don't remember."

Stella looked deeply worried for me, but also a little judgemental.

"I-I don't know.....Shadow I don't know-"

"Stella," I stopped her, feeling sorrow crave for its share of my soul as I pleaded, "Please let me do this. This could be a chance, maybe our only chance of getting out of here. It's the only way."

Stella lifted her eyes to me, lowered them, raised them once more, then sighed. She seemed full of doubt and uncertainty, and she twitched her leg muscles, reminding herself of what has happened from those who interact with the clock. Eventually, she submitted to my plans with a heaving puff of steam.

"How could I even break away from your young eyes Tyrannosaur," She chuckled, then grinned, "Alright. But just this time only."

YES!

"You don't have to mother me you know," I hissed playfully, nudging her. Stella blushed,

"I'm 20 years older than you youngling."

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We left a few hours after our conversation, just me and Stella, trekking through the rubble of broken rocks and torn-down trees. We were being covered in tons of ash as we stomped our way through the vanished trees, and at some points, I head Stella coughing hard, inhaling somewhat of too much ash. It tasted bad to tell you the truth, and burned painfully in my lungs, like chest burns and pains at the same time. I wished that they were snow instead.