Egg: Part 1

by Leafmuncher

Her attention is soon drawn away though as her foot hit something rather large and rounded. With a scaly hand she pulls away the ferns to reveal a fawn colored egg...

Cautiously Leaf Muncher bent her big head down and sniffed the egg, trying to determine what species it was. The scent was unfamiliar to her. The egg’s surroundings looked like someone had tried to scrape together a quick nest. Perhaps they were on their way to Waterfall City to give birth and were too late she thought. She wondered where the mother of the egg could be; she looked at the ground around the egg but could not find any tracks other than her own. She realized the urgency needed to get the egg safely to a hatchery if she wanted to have any hope in it hatching, but before she left she called out loud to anyone who might be near by asking if the egg was there’s and that she needed some help.

Not wasting any more time she bent down and picked up the egg in her hands, well if you would call an Iguanodon’s paw a hand. The egg was heavy between her large digits telling her that it wasn’t far away from it’s hatching due date. Three big fingers from each side, worn from being walked on held the egg firmly, while she carefully made sure her thumb spikes were not in danger of slipping and piercing the egg in any way. Leaf Muncher was not very familiar with Waterfall City, she lived with her herd on the outskirts of Hadro Swamp and worked at a near by Nursery that looked after very young human dolphinbacks until they could be found new homes and families. She was good at what she did, often managing to calm the most distraught human hatchling. Rosaline was the main character there, she was a human, old and wise who lived at the nursery along with her saurian friend Sandclaw. Sandclaw was just about as old and as wise, she was a Maiasaur.

She ran on her hind legs towards the City and as she did so she held the egg close to her, trying to keep it warm. Then she remembered what she had once seen Sandclaw do. The nursery had a small area set aside for one or two eggs to be incubated, The nursery didn’t really hatch eggs but it was there just incase there was an emergency and dinosaurs from Hadro Swamp could not reach a proper hatchery in time. Leaf Muncher had only just started to work there full time, she hadn’t been old enough before and just went over to watch how the humans and saurians did the job, she was due to be trained how to look after eggs only next month. “Looks like I’ll have to have an early lesson, right here!” she laughed to herself, despite the situation.

Leaf Muncher remembered how once an Edmontosaurus egg had been bought in by a very distressed Edmontosaurus father. She recalled how Sandclaw had tended to the egg, covering it up with mosses... That was it! She needed some moss. Thankfully she wasn’t out of the forest yet. She came to a halt and put the egg down carefully, then she used her keen eyesight to look for mosses. She was named after her appetite for leaves and all things green, so finding a patch of thick moss on a near by rock was no trouble. Soon she was back on her way towards the city at full speed, the egg now safe and warm wrapped in the moss. It wasn’t too long before she reached what looked like the entrance to Waterfall City, her heart dropped like a stone as she realized that Waterfall City was situated on the other side of a deep chasm before her. She ran a little way up the side hoping to find a way across. That was when she stumbled onto one of the strangest things she had ever seen. It was a large model of a Skybax made out of wood; there were seats in the middle of it for humans, far too small for her.

“Now you look like one lost and confused Iguanodon if ever I saw one. I haven’t spoken in Iguanodon tongue for a while now, correct me if I say anything wrong.”

Leaf Muncher jumped at the strange sounding voice that came from behind her and spoke in her language. Iguanodon tongue was not a hard one to understand or learn; it was very much like the universal Hadrosaur tongue.

A young human male came up beside her with a relaxing smile on his face.

“Oh, er sorry,” Leaf Muncher apologized.

“That’s quite alright, breath deep seek peace. Now tell me what brings you here and what have you got in those hand’s of yours?” said the kind man in a distinct accent.

Leaf Muncher explained how she had decided to go for a long walk on her day off from work when she ended up not far from Waterfall City. She was going to start the long walk home when she stumbled upon the egg.

Whilst she talked the man kept the same kind expression on his face, which relaxed her a little. “Well, we must get this egg across to the City first before we do you.”

Leaf Muncher nodded. The man appeared about the same age as her, although dinosaurs took a lot longer to reach full size.

“Oh, by the way, my name is Leaf Muncher,” she said handing the egg over to the man and thankfully dropping to all fours.

“Mine is James. Pleased to meet you. Follow me up here Leaf Muncher and we’ll get your egg across on the next flight.”

She followed. Not far up ahead there were yet more flying contraptions and lots more human people, there were even a few small saurians like Compsognathus running about. Leaf Muncher felt oddly out of place, even though still not fully grown she was very big in comparison to the humans and small saurians. She watched with wonder at the flying models loaded with humans and saurians were pushed off the edge of the cliff and soar across the sky towards the big city.

That was when an old looking human who had just pushed off a model waved at James. James waved back and laughed. “Come on Leaf Muncher this old guy will help you.”

Leaf Muncher smiled and followed James towards the older man.

“Hello James, what have you got there? An Iguanodon?” Rasped the older man in a very low and husky voice, which sounded far too old for his body.

“Simon this is Leaf Muncher.”

“Hello there,” said Leaf Muncher in the hadrosaur tongue.

“Hello Leaf Muncher. My name is Simon. Nice to meet you! What brings you two here? What’s that in your hand James?” replied Simon.

James explained the story to Simon while Leaf Muncher stood and watched Simon’s face change with each step of the story. Finally when James finished, Simon said. “Leaf Muncher I’ll take the egg across and find a hatchery in Waterfall City myself, you will have to come across a different way, through some caves. James here will go with you and show you the way. You have done a great job coming all this way, Waterfall City was probably the egg’s best hope of surviving.” Simon patted her shoulder.

“Thank you Simon, look after the egg won’t you?” asked Leaf Muncher, starting to treat the egg as her own.

“I’ll guard it with my life. Now if you and James want to be in Waterfall City before dusk then I suggest you get going, I’ll send a messenger to greet you both and lead you to where I’ll be.”

After saying goodbyes and Leaf Muncher wishing the egg good fortune she soon set off with James back the way she had come, but instead of going back into the forest they stayed around the cliff’s edges.

“So James where are you from?” she asked her new companion.

“Oh I’m from Waterfall City, been there most of my life. I help build the Skybax models you saw. I was working on model number 56 when you appeared.”

“I hope I haven’t gotten in your way,” she replied, suddenly aware that she might of interrupted Jame’s work.

“Oh not at all Leaf Muncher in fact I was just coming back from looking for blackberries to eat when you arrived. And taking you to Waterfall City is far better than trying to work out the diametrics on that thing,” laughed James.

Leaf Muncher made a soft hooting noise that sounded like a chuckle. “I couldn’t help but notice the way you talk James, why is that?” asked Leaf Muncher perplexed as to why James sounded so different.

“Well before I came to Dinotopia I lived in a country called France, we speak a different language there and I just have a strong French accent when I talk, just like Hadrosaurs have an accent when they talk the Dinotopian language,” replied James. “So where are you from Leaf Muncher?” he asked.

“Well I live with my herd on the outskirts of Hadro Swamp, I work somewhere else though.”

“Where do you work? What do you do?” Asked James.

Leaf Muncher then went and explained everything about where she worked to James and how she had managed to walk all the way out here, even though she was not sure herself on how she did that either.

Leaf Muncher’s talking and James’s smile soon found them quickly at the mouth of a big cave. The roar of the great waterfalls seemed to be everywhere as they walked into the damp caves, which were big enough to let a sauropod pass through. Leaf Muncher herself was not bothered about the puddles she walked through but James’s feet looked on the soggy side. “Your feet look rather wet James,” she said beginning to lie down “Come on hop up,” she said motioning for James to climb aboard her back.

“That’s very kind of you, but are you sure you can manage my weight?” James’s knew that dinosaur sizes can be misleading and that Leaf Muncher was not yet fully grown.

“It’s only a little way till the City right?”

“Hm yes, not long now.”

“Well then I should be able to save your feet the wet walk for just that little way,” chuckled Leaf Muncher.

James gratefully climbed up and sat, leg on either side at the base of her neck. Leaf Muncher got up and started walking, the weight at first surprised her, but she was fine walking on all fours. “Do you have a saurian partner James?” she asked, her foot just missing a deep puddle.

“Yep, her name is Parle. She’s a Saurlophus.”

“Oh, that’s how you know the Iguanodon tongue then, and you speak the Hadrosaur tongue so well too.”

“Thanks, yes Parle is something of a Hadrosaur translator, more helping humans understand hadrosaur tongue than the other way round though. She works in Waterfall City during the day while I’m out here, but in the evening we are together. I’ve learnt a lot from her. Her name Parle is French and means talk,” replied James “What about you?”

“Well when I was younger I wasn’t allowed to work full time at the nursery, but I used to come watch and help out if I could. One day when I came, a young toddler had been bought in by the dolphins. I was always about and we soon became friends. They would often let Andrew, that was his name, go out and find raspberries with me; it would allow the working dinosaurs some time to do other things. Of course now he has his own foster family and lives with them, but he still says that I’m his saurian friend and he comes to see me on special days and events, or when he doesn’t have school,” she shook her head as a big drop of water landed on it.

“That’s nice. Hey, look ahead we are here,” said James. Up ahead the gloom of the caves was fast being replaced with a bright light as they emerged into Waterfall City. Leaf Muncher froze in awe at the huge marble pillars before her and the houses with doors large enough to take in dinosaurs of her size. James laughed “Quite a site hey?”

“I’ll say!” she replied, starting to lie down again in order to let James off.

James climbed down just as they were met by a Struthiomimus. The colorful messenger had a big plumed cap full of large colorful feathers upon its bright green head. The nimble creature announced, “You must be James and Leaf Muncher. I’m called Whiptail. Welcome to Waterfall City. Simon is waiting for you at the hatchery, follow me and I’ll take you there.”

“Thank you Whiptail,” replied Leaf Muncher smiling with delight and importance. James smiled his nice smile and nodded thanks to Whiptail. Then the trio walked through some giant gates and into the city, Leaf Muncher marveling at everything the City had to offer her…

[Top] [Next]