Ark, The Adventure Continues. Complete Revision

[rpicardi1]

This is a final revision of the original story with the second alternate ending. There has been a lot of content added to the chapters, so much that I need to post the story completely new. It gets too confusing for readers to have to search put all the revisions which there have been a ton of since the last posting on the alternate ending.

Therefore, I will leave it to the readers which one they like. Killing off the Alpha Wyvern? An unexpected end of the battle? Or, a totally demoralized creature seeking help from what she considers her worst enemy.

Let the adventure began.

Ark, Primitive Plus, Scorched Earth.

 

This story is loosely based upon the official ark total conversion Primitive Plus and the newly released Scorched Earth. Both official game maps are being used as I compose this latest adventure. The story will loosely follow game play include leveling up and crafting. Use the official WIKI for how things actually work in Ark. What happens in the story may not take place in the game for real.

All characters are fictional based upon fictional locations. Any resemblance to real names or location are purely coincidence. References to any location or movies are not intended as endorsements.

May not be suitable for young readers.

 

Chapter One. The archaeological expedition.

 

It has been nearly a year since our surprise visit to Ark on The Center. I am currently out on an archaeological dig site in Arizona with Joe and Mary, Dr Sanders, Tod and Sarah, and two other undergraduate students Mike and Christina. The Montana Dig has been postponed for now.

Dr Sanders has been much easier to get along with the past year. It may be as a result of that unplanned visit last year to Ark from the conference room, or the fact that he was able to arrange to be on this trip with the blessings of the University, thanks to an unknown donor that is sponsoring this expedition.

Our Camp has been established in the rugged terrain in Arizona West of the Rockies near the Grand Canyon. As it is on Navajo Land, we have been provided with two escorts from the local tribe, Chief Terry and the Medicine Woman Pauline, his wife.

We had spent a couple of days meeting in private with the chief and his wife for permission to conduct the survey. Strangely, on the morning of the second day Chief Terry announces to us that the Gods have given their blessing for us to enter the sacred grounds for our survey with them as our escorts. At that meeting, we explain to them what we will be looking for, that we will be doing all our work by hand so as to disturb the land as little as possible. Ours is not an expedition of digging up the hillsides with heavy machinery. Such tools would destroy what we are looking for in the first place.

It has been a week of exploring and surveying since we arrived at the archaeological site and set up camp. The area is so rugged that everything had to be packed in by horseback. We are literally living in a pioneer camp much like the gold miners of the 1800s. We are lucky to be camped out along a flat overlook with a plateau to shelter us from the hot afternoon sun where there is a clean water source from a spring on that hillside. The nearby valley has provided us with plenty of dry wood for our campfire for cooking.

We have been scouting the surrounding area doing test digs searching through the ravines and stream banks for signs of the fossils we are interested in. Finally, we find what we are looking for. “This large piece of shale embedded in the ground looks promising,” says Sarah.

“Tap this edge carefully with your rock hammer,” answers Dr Sanders.

The edge splits loose as we carefully lift off the loose top of the shale revealing the forward half of a perfectly preserved Compy. “That's incredible,” answers Dr Sanders. “The impression of the skin and body have been remarkably preserved.”

Working on the shale hiding the rest we carefully break it loose. “There's the other half of that little pest,” says Sarah.

“Why do you call them little pest,” ask Mike.

“They have this nasty habit of being curious around you,” answers Sarah. “When enough of their friends have arrived, they start attacking you like a swarm of angry bees.”

Thinking about that for a few seconds, Sarah adds to her answer. “That was was shown about them during the Jurassic Park movie.”

Chief Terry and Pauline come over to examine the fossil in detail. “There are legends of these creatures existing in our spoken history.” the chief explains. “The presence of their ghost here is the reason these are sacred lands we have keep secret from outsiders until now.”

“As has been the current practice of doing archaeological digs on sacred sites, we will make sketches of what we find, make some measurements, take some photographs, and return them back to their natural state.” answers Dr Sanders. “Besides, this shale can be so fragile that we could destroy it by digging it out. There are fossilized bones in the cover pieces.” Carefully removing the bits of clay and shale around them with a pick and brushes, we soon have a complete skeleton exposed along with all of the teeth in place. “Remarkably well preserved,” as I get photos of the skeleton before we place the cover shale back in place.

“We have a Trilobite fossil in this piece of shale,” says Mike. “It is also well preserved.”

“There are definite impressions of feathers on what looks like part of a Utah Raptor forearm in this fossil,” says Tod.

“This looks like a good place to start our detailed survey,” announces Dr Sanders as we unpack our equipment to do measurements and sketches of what we are finding.

That evening back at camp, I meet with Joe and Mary in their tent. “I wonder if we could be returning to Ark soon,” I ask. “The unknown donor, Chief Terry suddenly giving us permission to enter his sacred land. What we are finding looks too well preserved, too much like what we have actually seen before.”

“It is very possible,” answers Mary. “We may find out soon.”

Heading back that morning, we continue laying out a grid to look for additional signs of fossils along the base of the cliff side. “Do you hear that hum coming from this cliff?” ask Mary to Joe.

“Yes,” answers Joe. “Everyone come here.”

As we all gather around and quiet down, I place my ear to the cliff side. “Chief Terry, have you ever heard this sound before?”

“No,” the chief answers. “Is it from our spirit world?”

“I don't believe it is from your spirit world” I answer. “That sounds like an artifact crate from Ark.”

“What is Ark?” ask Chief Terry.

“It is a place populated with extinct prehistoric creatures from Earth's past that several of us had the privilege to visit last year,” I answer.

“There are legends of a time of the Cliff Dwellers where such creatures roamed the Earth,” answers Pauline. “A chief named Turok led his people in that land where the Thunder Lizards roamed among the Mammoths and Sabertooth Cats. How were you able to travel to such a place?”

“It's a long story that you wouldn't believe unless you actually experience it,” I answer. “There's one way to find out. Lets dig into the shale on the cliff side and see what shows up.”

Digging into the loose shale a hole suddenly appears with a blue pulsating light from inside. “That is definitely an artifact crate from Ark,” I answer as I look inside. Chief Terry and Pauline look inside, then look at us like they have seen ghost. A little more digging and the shale opens up into a tunnel leading into the chamber of a cave with the silver crate in the center.

“Come inside everyone,” I say. “It's safe. We have seen this before.”

As we enter, an old bookcase appears near the wall containing what looks like a notebook. Mary goes over to it, picks it up, and examines it.

“A Survivor's Handbook for Primitive Plus,” answers Mary as she picks it up along with a note. “It says that this artifact crate contain a portal to North Tropical Island on The Center”

“Incredible,” answers Dr Sanders. “It appears that we have been invited to another visit on Ark. Just like that Airship Commander told us would happen about now.”

The entrance to the cave suddenly vanishes throwing Chief Terry, Pauline, and the two undergrads into a panic.

“Everyone calm down,” announces Mary. “ Halsey, Joe, and myself have been on Ark before on three separate occasions. Dr Sanders, Tod, and Sarah were there with us last year.”

“The note with The Survivor's Handbook says that we have been invited to spend a year on Ark in the Primitive Plus environment. We are to learn how to make tools and shelter using the primitive skills of our pioneers. We are to make use of the land and the creatures in it to hunt, fish, gather resources, and to farm those same crops for our use as our ancestors. Unlike our other visits, we will spawn in together as a group.”

“I have been studying Primitive Plus in my spare time,” answers Tod. “It will not be that hard once we get started as we can all specialize in the various skills that will be available for the benefit of us all.”

“Chief Terry, Pauline, Mike, Christina, gather around,” I say to the newcomers. “When we enter Ark, we will arrive naked on a tropical beach, with nothing but our hands and wits to aid us in surviving. We will quickly need to craft up weapons for our defense since we are certain to run into creatures that will try to kill us for their lunch. Once we can craft up primitive weapons and find a safe place, we will build a shelter, start gathering food, and craft up some clothing. Get a visual picture of where you are on North Tropical Island. If you happen to be killed by some predator, you will be reborn somewhere nearby. Try to get back to the rest of us as quickly as possible.”

“What just appeared in my left wrist?” ask Chief Terry and the other newcomers.

“We now have our Specimen Implants,” announces Mary.

“At Level 1, so, we are starting from scratch again.” I answer.

“Chief Terry, Pauline, Mike, Christina, you look into your Specimen Implant to gather information about you and your surrounding and to use and craft items. Soon as you can when we enter Ark, pick up a stone from the ground and punch a tree to get wood and ten thatch. Use the implant crafting section to make a pick and select it. Use that pick to gather flint from a boulder, wood and thatch from a tree, and to defend yourself if you are attacked by something. We'll guide you from there.”

“Is everyone ready for the adventure of a lifetime?” ask Mary.

“Ready to pay a visit to your spirit world?” I ask Chief Terry and Pauline.

“Yes,” they say.

“Here we go,” says Mary as she accesses the portal in the Loot Crate.

 

 

Chapter 2 Primitive Plus.

 

In a flash, we are all laying on our backs on a sandy tropical beach, staring up into that beautiful tropical sky in a familiar place from our last visit. Fully awake, I quickly realize that we are not in a safe location. It is South tropical Island of The Center, but we are way down the beach near the stone arch where the predators spawn. Three dilos and a raptor are on the beach nearby. Sounding an alert, one of the dilos has spotted us as it calls for his friends. The nearby raptor hears the alert and comes running towards us.

“Run towards that dinosaur,” I shout. “Get some of the other herbivores between you and that raptor.”

Luck is with us as the raptor takes interest in a Carbonemys and is soon in a battle with three of them. We manage to outrun the dilos which soon take interest in some smaller creatures nearby.

Gathering behind a large boulder and completely out of breath, we take a head count. Everyone has made it. “That was close,” says Joe as he gathers a stone and hits a driftwood log to craft a pick.

“Lets get some weapons ASAP,” I say as I craft my pick and hit the boulder with it for some flint.

“Excellent,” says Tod. “We have the same gather rate as before.”

“I'll keep an eye out for trouble as everyone levels up to get spears,” says Joe. “Chop on the smaller boulders for flint so we can keep this one for cover.”

“Was that a Utah Raptor I saw as I stood up?” ask Chief Terry.

“Yes it was,” I answered. “And it would have killed you had you not ran past those turtle creatures. Until we can obtain slingshots, bolas, and bows and arrows, we are basically defenseless against them. Once we are strong enough, we can go tame one for our use.”

“Tame one!” says Chief Terry.

“Most every creature on Ark can be tamed for our use,” I answer. “We'll talk about that later. Right now, we need to get food, weapons, clothes, and find a safe place to shelter for the night. If luck is still with us, the L shaped cliff we used on our last visit should provide us with a safe zone for shelter.”

A bit relaxed for now, we reach Level 2. “Take the hatchet and spears,” says Tod. “We can start to specialize once we reach Level 3.”

We gives our newcomers a quick course in using the specimen implant to help them quickly craft up the new items.

“How do I get fiber for a spear?” ask Christina.

“Go gather some berries from those bushes,” answers Sarah.

“Craft up at least three spears,” I tell our newcomers. “They have a habit of breaking at the worst possible moment when fighting predators.”

“Dang, here comes those annoying little pest again,” says Sarah as a group of compys take interest in us.

“Easy hide and fresh meat,” I say as we spear them. “Switch to the hatchet to butcher them when they are down. You hardly get anything using the spear.”

“Now, I see why you call them annoying little pest,” answers Christina.

“They would make cute little pets if they weren't such a pain to tame,” answers Sarah.

Level three soon arrives as the XP is shared among all of us. “Time to specialize,” announces Tod.

“I'll get the campfire and sleeping bag,” I say.

“We'll get the thatch shelter items,” says Mary.

“We'll get the cloth clothes,” says Tod.

The rest are assigned other items with Mike and Christina being assigned to gather thatch building materials.”

“Lets head over around the cliff to build our shelter,” I say to the others. “Gather up some wood, thatch, and fiber as we head over there.”

“Are those Dodo Birds?” ask Christina.

“Yes, they are,” answers Sarah. “Soon as we get some shelter built, we will go kill some of the roosters for food and hide and tame up the hens for an egg farm.”

Checking out as safe, we start construction on out temporary shelters. I craft up a couple of campfires, place them down at the cliff corner and start cooking up the fresh meat from the Compys.

“If your hungry, eat the berries.” I tell the newcomers. “Don't eat the black or white ones. Save the Mejos and black ones. We'll need them for taming later.”

“Anyone got some extra thatch?” ask Sarah.

“Yes,” says several of the others.

“Drop it in front of us, there will soon be clothes for everyone.”

“You're not crafting up sleeping bags yet?” ask Chief Terry.

“Not at this time,” I answer. “They are a one time use item specific to the individual. I'm saving the hide for slingshots. I had to learn how to make them so I can get the spawn bed when it becomes available. Once they are available, I'll craft them up. That way, if one of us gets killed, anyone can use a bed to return directly back to our camp.”

It is mid afternoon as we reach Level 5 during our construction of our shelter when suddenly, a shower of stones come down the cliff followed by a badly injured parasaur with a raptor in hot pursuit. Our newcomers jump behind us in a panic. “Spears ready,” shouts Joe as the parasaur runs towards the safety of our camp with the raptor close behind. It kills the parasaur just as us seasoned veterans launch several spears into the raptor killing it.

“I didn't think anything could survive a jump from such a height,” comments Mike.

“For some unknown reason, they can,” I answer. “But, we can't. That fall would instantly kill us and any tames we are riding. It is time we pair up so we can teach you the art of primitive defensive combat in Ark.”

“We are going to have to secure that cliff above as soon as we can,” answers Joe.

“Lets do so once we can craft up spiked fences,” I answer.

We get a bunch more fresh meat and hide from the two dead creatures. I place the meat on the fire and later distribute the cooked meat to everyone to eat. I keep the hide for slingshots and the simple beds that I can now craft.

With the rest of the Level 5 engrams distributed, we soon have several storage boxes in place for our extra items. With the mortar and Pestle, we will soon have narcs and spark powder.

“A pitchfork?” questions Dr Sanders. “Are we going to be farmers like those city slickers in Green Acres?”

“No,” answers Tod. “It works like a spear made from wood, only a little better. And, you don't need any flint or fiber to make one.”

“Damn, these standing torches require oil or spark powder to use,” says Dr Sanders.

“Its one of the changes in Primitive Plus,” answers Tod. “Standing Torches no longer work with wood as fuel.”

“Lets see if we can get a wood wall around our camp before it gets dark,” I say. “Then, go get some dodos for that egg farm.”

With wood foundations and walls on their crafting list, Joe and Mary get to work crafting those items as we construct a temporary wall for the night after bringing in the required materials from the surrounding area.

Mike and Christina go out Dodo hunting with Tod and Sarah. They bring back with them a dozen tamed hens and a rooster. They have killed a dozen others bringing back fresh poultry, hide, and feathers.

“How do we get the Dodos to come in through the door?” ask Christina.

“Just pick them up and carry them in,” I answer.

“We have fresh poultry and feathers along with hide,” answers Mike.

“Feather and fresh poultry?” questions Mary.

“It makes sense,” answers Tod. “My play testing Primitive Plus indicates that we will have many more food types. Since they are birds with feathers, they are considered poultry. We can use the feathers to make better flying stone arrows.”

“Just like all of these new seed type we got from picking the bushes,” answers Mary. “And, a drone bee as well.”

“Dr Sanders and I are going out to tame some dilo,” I say. “They will be our guard dogs in case something comes snooping by during the night.”

As evening approaches, we spot a male and give chase, dropping it with our slingshots. “Aguh, I can't see,” a panicked Dr Sanders screams. I club the female until she drops unconscious.

“Well, at least we got a mated pair,” I tell Dr Sanders as his vision returns.

“I can't believe I fell for that trick again!” answers Dr Sanders.

“It just means that we must not allow ourselves to be distracted by the job at hand,” I answer. “Pack hunters excel at distraction before ambushing you from the side or behind.”

We bring the tamed pair back to camp after getting rid of some more Compys that come to annoy us. We bring them through the thatch doorway before sealing it off with wood for the night.

Chief Terry, Pauline, and the undergrads get their first close up look at our dilos. “Interesting creatures,” comments Chief Terry. “Behaving just like sheep dogs.”

“They will alert us if something unfriendly comes by or falls off the cliff above during the night.” I tell them.

We are kept awake part of the night as a tropical electrical storm rolls in and it starts getting cold. “Fill up your water skins and get inside,” I say as the lightning flashes all about. It later clears to a beautiful starlit sky with a bright moon. Other then a Bronto walking close by, the rest of our first night on Primitive Plus remains quiet.

By morning, we have now reached Level 10. “Wooden Spike Walls,” Joe says. “We can now craft up a low resource barrier to protect us from above.”

“Bolas too,” I answer. “We can now immobilize any raptors that come after us or those herbivores we want to tame early.”

“Some basic furniture, a sawmill, Parasaur Saddle, more wood building materials, feeding trough, Lumber building materials, fence foundations, We can expand the pen as soon as we can construct a dino gate.” says Tod.

Tod, Sarah, Dr Sanders, and I head up the path to the cliff above gathering resources to craft up the needed spike walls on the way up. “I can't place this section down where I want it,” says Tod.

“Lets get this metal boulder out of the way first,” I say. “Pickaxes only.”

“Limestone?” questions Dr Sanders.

“One of the new resources,” answers Tod. “We will need limestone along with the clay stone we have been getting from the boulders for brick.”

“What about the crystal?” ask Sarah.

“Leave that for now until we get metal tools,” I answer. “We will only get stone from them for now.”

“There's a green loot crate up on the hill,” says Dr Sanders.

“We'll leave it for now,” I answer back. “There may be predators hiding nearby. We need to be level 15 to access its contents.”

Our trip back remains uneventful as we pick up some stuff in a white loot crate which includes a Phioma saddle with some basic resources and another spawn bed.

At noon, with everyone working on gathering, hunting, and crafting, we hit Level 15 where a bunch of badly needed items show up.

“Excellent,” says Joe. “Finally, bow and arrows. Fish trap and bait.”

“A wood raft for exploration and resource gathering,” says Tod.

“Stone plumbing, compost bin, Crop plots, stone walls, foundation, and a Dino Gate,” I say

“A raptor Saddle,” says Sarah. “Lets go tame some.”

“Slow down,” I caution. “Lets wait until we can make tranc arrows before taking on raptors. Meanwhile, we could use a pair of Parasaurs for berry harvesting until we can get the Trike saddle. Take the undergrads with you and go tame up a pair for the tribe.”

“We should get a raft built so we can go to the nearby islands to find tribolites for chitlin and oil,” say Mary.

As the raft is being constructed with the other items now available. I get a chance to talk to Chief Terry in detail about Ark and The Keepers.

“There is so much going on here,” comments Chief Terry. “This world is so amazing, so beautiful. I never knew so many creatures existed that could be tamed.”

“It's hard to know,” I answer. “The Incas, we visited two years ago, first learned about ark some 5,000 years ago in their written history. About 500 years ago, their chief, high priest, historian, and twelve of their best warriors were sent to Ark with the mission to save their history and gold artifacts from the invading Spaniards. We found the twelve warriors that remained behind on that visit. They had only aged a year even though 500 years had passed on Earth. They currently live on Ark with their families which were returned to them by The Keepers. Last time I saw them, their technology had advanced into the Victorian Era. They were prospering quite well having turned their ark into a paradise for themselves and the creatures inhabiting it.”

“Is this indeed the promise land of our spiritual world?” ask Chief Terry.

“Unknown,” I answer. “It is how we chose to make it. The Marquis gang, a rival tribe we were forced to evict to another Ark has turned it into a living hell through greed and constant warfare with ever deadlier weapons. When we observed it last, it had been turned into a radioactive wasteland. Not a plant or creature remains. They condemned themselves into an endless cycle of dying a most horrible death from their constant fighting and the deadly environment they created.”

“So, we are free to control our own destiny in Ark?” ask Chief Terry.

“From the stories I have read that are considered to be fiction, Yes,” I answer. “Turok tribe lived in an area in the Western US with the last known survivors from the Dinosaur Age. There are no records of them ever taming any. They did obtain horses that has escaped from the invading Spaniards. Your sacred land, where we were doing the survey, could possibly be that location where they lived. It would explain the well preserved fossils we found the other day. Then again, given that a loot crate had appeared there, it is possible that there could have been a portal connected directly to Ark that Turok and his people actually entered and lived there for a while.”

“There are stories of other such lost worlds having been discovered throughout history. One such world was supposed to exist high up on a plateau in South America near a place called Angel Falls. It could only be accessed through a lava tube. It has since vanished. Another was supposed to exist in a volcanic cauldron deep in the Antarctic where it was discovered by a stranded Nazi sub crew during WW2. They sailed into it through an underground river. It was destroyed by volcanic activity and eventually buried by the ice. A third was deep under the Earth in a huge cavern and and discovered by explorers who found an entrance to it in Iceland. They barely escaped with their lives when volcanic activity flooded the cavern with lava. A fourth was on an uncharted island far in the South Atlantic that was home to King Kong, a giant gorilla. They captured Kong bringing him back to New York where he escaped and was eventually killed by the military. That happened during the 30s. Skull Island was never found again. A fifth where a civilization on a lost island lived with tamed dinosaurs, some of which were intelligent enough to actually communicate with humans and speak their language. It was known as Dinotopia. It's location has remained a mystery.”

“As of any connection to The Keepers of Ark, that is unknown. They observe developing civilizations, studying them, testing them, something guiding them away from destroying themselves. Their Arks appear to be artificial worlds created as places to preserve various extinct creatures from the past from ours and other worlds. They are laboratories to study how those beings interact with those worlds and the creatures in them.”

“We have never seen The Keepers in the flesh. I don't think that anyone has. We have interacted with a dragon named Draco on our last visit who is in contact with them on a regular bases. I don't believe that dragons actually existed in Earth's history as there is no physical evidence of any remains. Rather, they may be like Draco, able to travel between worlds.”

“There are so many mysteries out there that we don't have the answer for. While it is highly possible that early civilizations may have worship them, the Keepers of the Ark do not consider themselves Gods. They are scientist seeking to preserve interesting extinct species and studying how other intelligent beings interact with them.”

“We will never know how intelligent those prehistoric creatures actually were back in their days. No humans existed back then to interact with them. The conditions here on Ark are artificial. The creatures here are adapted for us to interact and make use of them to aid in our survival.”

“Still, there is a lot we are learning from the fossil studies and our observations on Chief Traska's ark that suggest that many of those extinct creatures protected their young, lived in family groups, and hunted in packs with a leader, much like many animal species do today.”

“We have two rafts completed,” Mary tells us.

“Excellent,” I answer. “We should take our new arrivals over to one of the smaller island to gather and craft resources for a large wood enclosure. The one island between North and South Tropical is uninhabited except for trilobites. So, it should be safe for gathering the amount of materials we will need.”

“That would be a good learning experience for them.” answers Mary. “The gathering and crafting should get us to Level 20 so we can get tranc arrows and tame a Trike for berry farming.”

Just then, Tod and Sarah come back with Mike and Christina who are riding on a pair of Parasaurs. “We used the bolas to catch them,” says Sarah. “They did the taming.”

“Take good care of them,” I say. “They will serve you well.”

 

Note on game playing Primitive Plus;

My player was spawned in by the arch where three dilos and a raptor was waiting. I did get away but was ambushed and killed while crafting weapons.

A raptor did chase a parasaur off the cliff as I was setting up camp. It cornered me that evening as I was checking a crafting list.

I was able to recover my stuff after respawning as the raptor had left.

The camp is now secured with wood walls where I have some dilos, a Trike, and a Pteradon.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter Three. Island Adventure.

 

It is early morning as we have a breakfast of berries and Dodo eggs. Both rafts are outfitted with six crates, a firepit, and mortise and pestle, so we can craft and store items we make for the day. I take Dr Sanders, Chief Terry and Pauline with me. Tod and Sarah are on the other raft with Mike and Christina. Joe and Mary are going to stay at base to set up fish traps, start the farming plots, and prepare the area for a major expansion.

We set sail to an uninhabited island between North and South Tropical reaching it in after a short trip.

“What is that object floating over the island?” ask Chief Terry.

“It is one of the three Obelisk of The Keepers,” I answer. “Under them is an alter that we can access to travel to other Arks, or by placing tributes in one, be transported to a boss arena to fight what are called boss monsters.”

“Isn't fighting a boss monster extremely dangerous?” ask Pauline

“It certainly is, but its not required,” I answer. “We did so on our last visit for the adventure, but only because we went together with a tribe of well armed experienced warriors. It was still a tough fight we won by getting both boss monsters to fight each other.”

“I see distant mountains along with that huge plateau to the South,” says Chief Terry. “Just how far can we travel in this world?”

“Ark is not like a world as we know it,” I answer. “As it is artificially created, it has a force field on its borders. We cannot travel to those distant mountains. We can travel over to the plateau once we craft better weapons and have strong tames. The Redwood forest there is inhabited by dangerous predators. We lost two of our tames in a surprise attack from an Allasaurs pack living there. Those were some really nasty high level ones.”

As we land at our destination, we spot several Tribolites on the beach. “Use your spears to kill these creatures, then your hatchet to harvest them,” I tell the others. “We need the chitlin and oil they have for our use. Don't worry, they are so primitive that they live on instinct alone. Like most of the fish in the sea, they are too primitive to be tamed.”

“Put the fresh meat in the fire to cook and the chitlin, oil, and pearls into this storage box. More of them will show up from the sea to sun themselves on the beach, They are quite abundant here.”

After the hunt, we set to work cutting wood and thatch, collecting fiber, and crafting up the fence sections for the pen. Given that Tod and Sarah also have the crafting engrams for wood structures, we take the materials to them by the raft as they craft up the items to place in storage.

“We are getting seeds such as tomatoes, wheat, and barley while we gather thatch,” says Christina. “What should we do with them and these berries?”

“Give them to Tod and Sarah,” I answer. “They will sort through them for storage on the raft. You can also eat the berries if you are hungry. Save the Mejos, Narcos, and stimm berries for Tod and Sarah. Give any spoiled meat you have to them as well.”

As we continue with our harvesting, we start heading further across the little island. “What is that creature over on the other island with the big sail on its back?” ask Chief Terry.

“Lets get out of its sight,” I answer. “That is a Spinosaur. It is an apex predator as big and as dangerous as a T-Rex. So long as it is fishing, it shouldn't take any interest in us. Should it swim over here, we will have to leave for our own safety.”

We continue gathering resources which includes harvesting the boulders for flint, claystone, and iron ore. The flint and stone are converted into spark powder. We also pick up extra stone to convert to cementing paste with the chitlin from the Tribolites we continue to find on the beach.

Our new comers, as we call them, are starting to ask us more questions about Ark and its resources. Pauline, the Chief's wife and Medicine Man for the Navajos, has become interested in the berries and products we are now crafting from them.

“What is the cementing paste used for?” ask Pauline.

“We need it for crafting certain saddles and other items,” I answer

“The narco, mejo, and stimm berries?” she ask. “Why are you keeping them separate from the others?”

“Narco berries act as a tranquilizer to us and most any creature on Ark.” I answer. “We grind them up with spoiled meat to make narcs which will keep indefinitely. They are useful in the taming process of the higher level creatures. As soon as we reach Level 20, we will have the ability to combine the narcs with stone arrows to make Narc Arrows. Those will allow us to easily knock out a creature to tame without killing it. We will also be able to quickly take down the dangerous ones, such as that Spino by the other island. When we can craft a Crossbow, those narc arrows will become even more effective with greater range then from our primitive bows.”

“We now have trancs,” announces Sarah as she has been able to convert the spoiled meat with the narco berries we have been gathering.

“Stim Berries,” I tell Pauline, “act as stimulants for a boost of energy or as an antidote to being injected by a paralyzing poison by those creatures that attack with it. We can now make stimms from stimm berries and spark powder that will keep indefinitely. They will work on us and our tames to keep us from falling asleep or to give us a boost of energy when we get tired. However, they are very dehydrating to us so we need to have water with us to counteract their dehydration effect.”

“Eventually, we will have other skills available to us such as creating Medical Brew for healing injuries, Sweet Cakes for our herbivore tames should they get injured, Lesser Antidote to cure Swamp Fever, and Bug Repellent.”

“Work with Mary when we get back to camp and she can tell you more about the various potions and cures we can craft on Ark and how they work.” I answer. “I have a feeling that all these new seeds are going to have some very interesting uses once we learn more about them.”

It is mid afternoon as we have reached Level 20 from all of the crafting and harvesting. Tod and I are given 10 tranc arrows each from the crafting with the berries and spoiled meat. “Lets head over to the island across from the camp for the hunting skills,” I say. “We will let Mike and Chief Terry hone their skills on cleaning out the compys and dilos, then go tame up a Trike.”

We sail over to the island and turn loose the newcomers to clean out the predators. “When you see the dilo flare its hood, dodge sideways to avoid its spit.,” I say. “Watch that they, or the compys, don't try to flank you. We'll bail you out if you get in over your head.”

We watch over Chief Terry and Mike as they take on the local predators soon cleaning them out. Tod and I proceed to find ourselves a low level Trike and drop her with two tranc arrows. With a stack of Mejo Berries and some extra Nercoberries, we start the taming process.

“Such amazing creatures close up,” comments Chief Terry. “Why do you use mejoberries if they eat the others?”

“Mejoberries are the preferred food while they are taming,” I answer. “It makes the process go a bit faster.

“Why did you pick a low level and not the much higher level one at the other end of the island,” ask Pauline

“Since we only need a berry harvester for now, a low level one will do the job,” I answer. “The higher level one would take us all night to tame. This one will be done soon.”

With the extra hide from the local predators, and the levelup, we have a saddle for the Trike which we name Trixie.

“Take her out for a ride,” I say to Christina. “Gather berries for us with her.” Before long, we have a full load of berries and other items which we load the extras on the rafts, then place Trixie on board to sail back to camp.

“Everyone grab a load of foundations and wall sections and take them to Joe,” I order as we land. I grab the two dino gates and two door sections. Joe lays out the foundation as the rest of us put up the walls four high with a Dino Gate on each end. We finish unloading the raft and bring Trixie inside as darkness falls.

“That's much better,” says Joe. “We have a nice large secured pen with more room for housing. That should keep the higher level predators from bothering us during the night.”

“We spotted a Spino near South Tropical,” I answer. “That's the first time I have seen one so far East.”

“Trixie got us three stacks of narco berries,” says Mary. “That will give us plenty of narc arrows to deal with one if it gets interested in our base.

“With some more wall sections and ladders, we can put up some watch towers to fight from,” answers Joe.

“We have a smokehouse, hand mill, refining forge, and tanning rack,” says Mary. “We also caught some fish in those fish traps. Anyone know where we can get salt for the smokehouse and tanning rack?”

“Crystal can be ground down to salt,” answers Tod.

“That's going to have to wait until we get a metal pick,” I answer. “We'll plan a trip to the uninhabited island South of South Tropical in the morning. By the time we get an outpost established there, we should be at level 25.”

 

“Meanwhile, we were able to get plenty of spark powder for the smokehouse,” I say.

“Oh, we need lumber and brick,” says Mary.

“I'll build the Lumber Station and we can craft up the lumber from wood,” answer Tod. “To make brick, we need to make clay with the claystone and limestone we got from the boulders, then cook the clay in the Refining Forge to make bricks. We will also need a Construction table.”

“Joe, Mike, Dr Sanders, Chief Terry, and I make a quick trip to the South of our camp for a wood run. After cleaning out some compys, we each get a load of wood and bring it back to camp. I get a forge crafted up after chopping up a boulder for the large amount of stone needed and using the hide from the Compys. With the additional stone, I craft up the Hand mill

“How can something so heavy be carried by one person?” ask Chief Terry.

“Another one of those strange things about Ark,” I answer. “Once crafted, most items weigh far less in our inventory then the materials needed to craft them.”

With the extra wood, we head back to camp where I place down the Refining Forge with wood in it. Tod takes the hand mill placing it down and gets the clay made. I take it and light the Refining Forge along with all of the iron ore we have collected. As soon as we have the brick, Tod crafts the Smokehouse and we have a place to preserve our meat and berries.

“Way past time to turn in for the night,” I say. “I'll let the fire cook up the rest of the brick and iron overnight.”

 

Note on gameplay;

It took a while to figure out making brick. That was further complicated by a bug that renders limestone worthless after exiting and reentering Ark.

I did spot a Spino close by fishing on one of the small island. Tribolites are common on the uninhabited one where the wood harvesting and crafting was done. Those materials allowed for building a secure pen for the berry harvesting Trike that was tamed nearby.

 

Chapter 4. More Island Adventures.

 

The fire has gone out in the Refining Forge, but, the Iron has been refined along with a bunch more brick.

“We should reach Level 25 while over on the other island,” I report at our morning meeting and breakfast.

“We'll have metal tools crafted up by the time you get back,” says Mary. “Maybe a spyglass and some salt for the Smokehouse. There is a male Trike nearby we can tame, then, we'll take both of them up above for more metal and crystal.”

We set sail to the uninhabited island by South Tropical to gather more building materials as well as to set up an overnight outpost.

“Lets sail close by South Jungle,” I say as we spot the Spino fishing near by.

“There's another on the beach on South Tropical,” announces Tod.

“What is that on the beach of South Jungle?”ask Chief Terry in a bit of alarm.

“Quick, sail back towards South Tropical before we are spotted,” I announce in alarm as well. “That is a Gigasaur. They are far more dangerous then those Spinos or even a T-Rex.”

We continue sailing South as more details from the Redwood Biome start showing up through the haze and clouds.

“Those trees look huge,” comments Chief Terry.

“They are the same trees that formed those huge petrified stone logs on your reservation,” I answer. “As you can see, they reach into the clouds.”

“Once we get better weapons, we can set up an outpost up on the eastern cliff. Oh, look likes we have a loot crate coming down at our destination.”

Landing on the shore, we get the loot crate which contains a set of stone tools, a bed, and a couple of torches. We place them in the storage box on the raft and get to work crafting wood building sections, also stone pipe sections, crop plots, and making Spark powder.

I take Chief Terry with me to survey a place for an outpost when he spots Skull Island. “What is that? Some huge stone idol to a fire God?”

“No,” I answer. “It is called Skull Island. I don't know what The Keepers had in mind creating it on Ark. I do know that once we get metal tools, we are heading over there to harvest obsidian rock for crafting new items.”

“This looks like a good place to build,” says Chief Terry.

“As no creatures other then Tribolites show up here,” I answer, “ We can build a simple shelter with basic crafting tools, a spawn bed, and a Go Box inside.”

“What is a Go Box?” ask Chief Terry.

“It is a storage box that contains a spare set of armor, tools, and basic weapons,” I answer. “It can be used if one of us gets killed to respawn here, or since we have to travel naked if we use the Spawn Bed as a teleport, we have our supplies ready at a destination.”

“You can use the beds as an instant transport?” ask Chief Terry.

“Yes,” I answer. “but it is much more efficient to just travel there in the first place since one is either exploring or bringing back resources.”

“Level 25,” says Tod.

“Excellent,” I say. “Mary should have metal tools and a crossbow by the time we get back.”

Late afternoon, we head back to base camp. The Giga has moved on further South as we notice the Spino we dodged earlier is now doing battle with the sharks.

“Metal tools and crossbow,” announces Mary as we return with the supplies to build the watchtowers. “We also have some extra Blacksmith Tables for the remote camps and the spyglass.”

“Oh, Trixie has a buddy,” I say.

“We used him as a pack mule for getting metal and crystal,” answer Mary. “We now have salt for making leather and for preserving. And, we built some beehives for the bees we found in the wild. They are now producing beeswax and honey.”

“We have crop plots and stone pipe in the raft,” I tell Mary.

“Excellent,” Mary answers. “I can now get started on the garden for these new seeds. I still need fertilizer.”

“I guess we will have to go on a poop run,” I answer. “With all of the trikes and parasaurs wandering around in the area, we should be able to find all the poop we need for the compost bins.”

Joe and I get to work on the watch towers as the others go looking for dino poop. Mary plots out the garden with Pauline and gets it planted using the small poop as fertilizer for now.

At our evening meeting, Mary tells us about being able to eat more normal foods soon. “We will soon have honey. Also barley, wheat, tomatoes, rice, almonds, and a variety of other pioneer crops. We should be able to bake bread, berry juice, jellies and preserves, make beer, even tobacco products.”

“That's sounds a lot more civilized then this cooked mystery meat, dodo eggs, and berries,” answers Dr Sanders. “Especially Beer.”

“We're off to Skull Island tomorrow,” I announce. “With metal tools, we can go get obsidian and crystal from there.”

At 2:00AM, there is a ruckus outside the base. Joe and I climb up the watchtower to observe a pair of raptors attacking a parasaur.

“Tod, Sarah, want to tame yourselves a pair of raptors,” I say.

“Where are they?” ask Sarah.

“Just outside the gate killing a Parasaur,” I answer. “Grab your bolas, bow, and tranc arrows. We will help from the watchtower.

Tranc arrows from the crossbow hit both raptors in the head. They start to run off just as Tod and Sarah bola each one in the legs. Two more tranc arrows and they are out.

“Lets get the meat and hide from their kill,” I say.

“I have four raptor kibble,” says Mary to Sarah.

“How did you get the longrass to make it?” I ask Mary.

“We found some up on the plateau above the base,” answers Mary.

“Excellent,” answers Tod. “This will make the tame much quicker.”

“Can we take them with us to Skull Island?” ask Sarah.

“Most certainly,” I answer. “They can help us with the predator threat over there.”

It isn't long before the mated pair of raptors wake up tamed. Saddled, Tod and Sarah take them out for a quick ride along the moonlit beach taking our some compys and dodos around the point.

Our Parasaurs are a bit nervous as the raptors are brought into the pen, then settle down when they realize they are not on their menu.

“They look amazing,” comments Chief Terry at his close inspection of the raptors that morning. “Such great coloring on those feathers.”

Our gathering party loads up on the two rafts with a raptor on each one. “When we reach Skull Island, be on the lookout for the giant centipedes,” I tell the newcomers. “Use ranged weapons on them and avoid their acid spit. It will ruin metal tools, so use only stone and flint ones on them. And, if you see a dragon, leave him alone.”

“A dragon! You got to be kidding,” answers Mike.

“No kidding,” answers Tod. “We saw one there on our last visit. Fortunately, he was a friendly dragon.”

Landing on Skull Island, we carefully look around for the predators. Finding none, we proceed to harvest obsidian and crystal.

“Sure is hot here,” comments Mike.

“Lava Island is even worse,” I answer.

Working in shifts to cool off on the raft, we gather everything surrounding the lava core in the skull.

“We got a break on that one,” I tell our newcomers. “Normally, this place has those giant centipedes, bats, spiders and dung beetles.”

We soon reach Level 30

“Lets stop over at the nearby island so we can take the raptors hunting,” ask Sarah.

“While you are hunting, we'll get flint, clay stone, and more building materials.” I answer. “Also, tribolites.”

“We can get pteradon saddles,” says Dr Sanders.

“Lets see if we can tame some from here,” I answer.

It is mid afternoon with all of the smaller creatures killed off by the raptors and our raft filled with raw materials, we prepare to sail back to home base. We have tamed four low level pteradons and have harvested enough chitlin to craft saddles for them. Dr Sanders and I take Chief Terry and Pauline on our new Pteradons back to base as the others bring the loaded rafts back with them.

“We'll stop at the outpost and the uninhabited island we were at yesterday to rest them,” I tell them. “We don't want to end up in the ocean if they get tired. When they level up with more stamina, they can take us further without getting so tired.”

We land at base to a surprised Mary. “You got pteradons already?” she ask.

“Our crafting requirements are different here.” I answer. “The saddles were available five levels early. In fact, several other late level saddles are now available for us.”

“That's good to know,” answers Mary. “The new crops are well under way in the plots by the beach. We do need more poop and thatch for the compost bins.”

“We have lots of thatch on the rafts.” I answer. “Also, a ton of crystal, metal, limestone, claystone, and obsidian.”

“We do have one problem,” answers Mary. “Just about everything new needs cementing paste.”

“Then, we will need to put our pteradons to work raiding beaver dams on South Jungle Island in the morning,” I answer.

 

 

On my gameplay I found Skull Island to be lacking predators. Harvesting and crafting resulted in quick level additions. Tranc arrows dropped a pteradon for my use after losing one to drowning as it tried to fly off.

There are beaver dams on South Jungle that can be raided by my pteradon using one of the uninhabited islands for storage and resting.

I have noticed that fish is no longer the preferred food for pteridons in Primitive Plus.

I do have bees producing honey and wax which is needed for crafting some common items such as a canteen.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 5. Our other adventurers;

 

At the time we started on our expedition to the Navajo Reservation in Arizona, Michael, Caroline, Denny, and Julia, are on a second honeymoon vacation in Egypt. Being the adventurers they are, they have booked a safari trip to a new archaeological dig in the Sinai Desert.

It is a one day trip by sand buggy to the dig site in a vary rugged area of the Southern Sinai. The area is hot and dry but the site does have a reliable water source at the base of a mountain where some ancient ruins have been discovered and are being excavated. There, they are introduced to Professor Narcy and his new wife Helen.

“Fancy meeting you here,” says Michael. “I thought you were still working at the box canyon temple in Peru.”

“We have finished up on that site,” answers Professor Narcy. “It was time for something new. By the way, what is Dr Sanders up to these days?”

“He took Halsey, Joe, and Mary with four other students on an archaeological dig in Arizona.” answers Michael. “What brings you here?”

“We have made a discovery of some early ruins that date back to a time before the Pyramids.” Professor Narcy says. “A grant from Cairo University is sponsoring this expedition.”

Just then, there is a panic among the diggers and the security guards hired for the project as they go fleeing from the dig site. “Now what?” ask Professor Narcy

“They heard those ghost again,” answers his graduate assistant Ahab.

“Lets head back down and see what their problem is all about this time.” says Professor Narcy,

As they enter the ruins, Caroline notices something familiar about the paintings and carvings on the walls. “Where have we seen these before” she ask the others.

“They look like those we saw in the cave of the Redwood Forest,” answers Julia.

“Where did you say where you saw these before?” ask Professor Narcy.

“We saw them two days after we visited Traska's Tribe on The Island,” answers Julia. “They were on the walls of some cave ruins in The Center.”

“Fascinating,” answers Professor Narcy. “They have appeared nowhere else on Earth.”

“Where is this Island and Center?” ask Ahab and his girlfriend Cleo.

“You don't want to know,” answers Professor Narcy. “You probably wouldn't believe us if we told you.”

“I hear that hum,” says Michael as he examines what looks like a door frame in the stone wall.

“So do I,” answers Denny. “Doesn't that sounds like an artifact crate?”

“If it does, then what is it doing here?” ask Caroline.

“Lets find out if we can open the door,” answers Michael. “There has to be another room back there.

A green pulsating light fills the room as the door opens and everyone enters the room. As soon as they are inside, the door vanishes.

“Where did it go?” ask a panicked Ahab as he searches for the missing entrance.

“It likely wasn't even there,” answers Michael. “Settle down so we can figure out what is going on here. We have seen this before.”

“That is definitely an artifact crate,” says Denny. “How do we access it without our, wait, I have mine.”

“We all do,” answers Julia, Michael, Caroline and Professor Narcy.

“What are these?” ask Helen, Ahab, and Cleo who are now in a panic over this unknown.

“Calm down,” answers Professor Narcy. “They are called specimen implants. They have been given to us by The Keepers of this place. It appears that they are going to send us back to Ark for their study.”

Before the others can ask more questions, the green pulsating light flashes brightly and they are rendered unconscious.

 

Chapter 6. Scorched Earth.

As they wake up naked on the hot desert shale of a dry wash, Michael screams out a warning, “Raptor, run for that rock outcropping.”

The raptor comes racing after us closing the gap as Michael shouts, “Run between those camel like things.” The raptor runs into one of the creatures which then attacks it. It's mate joins in the fight as they pin it against a boulder and kill it.

“This can't be the Ark as I know it,” says Professor Narcy.

“It isn't, but it has to be an Ark.” answers Michael as he gathers material for a pick. “There are the three floating Obelisks in the distance. Everyone, craft up some weapons. Show our newcomers what to do. Then we can figure out where we are and how we are going to survive in this hostile world.”

Wood and thatch is gathered from the Joshua Trees, fiber from the brush, loose stones on the ground, flint from the boulders, as the group quickly level up crafting the hatchet, spears and basic clothing.

Michael heads back to the dead raptor harvesting it for the meat and hide. “I'll save it's hide for slingshots, then we can craft gloves and shoes.”

“What are we going to do for water?” ask Helen.

“There has to be a spring or oasis around here somewhere,” answers Denny. “Meanwhile, eat the berries you have gathered. Just don't eat the black ones and especially don't eat the white ones. They will dehydrate you.”

“It looks like there may be a canyon to the North,” says Ahab. “It may contain a spring down there.”

“Were going to have to get out of this blazing sun and soon,” answers Michael. “It's starting to get really hot out.”

“Lets try for the shade in that rock outcropping,” says Michael. “That should help some until evening arrives.”

“What is this blue bug that just landed?” ask Cleo.

“Catch it,” says Denny. “My engram says it is a water jug bug.”

“A weird water source,” answers Professor Narcy. “We better take advantage of it given how rapidly our water meter is dropping in spite of eating the berries.”

“107*F and climbing,” says Denny. “We better shelter under that cliff face now.”

The group heads for the cliff face finding that the overhang is providing some relief from the extreme desert heat which has now exceeded 120* F. Water is remaining a concern as dehydration is starting to set in.

“Build some boxes for storage and transfer your excess items into them,” says Denny. “I'm going looking for water.”

“Be careful out there,” answers Julia. “This is far worse then any survival challenge we have ever taken.”

Several minutes later, Denny returns with some good news. “There is a water vein over by that thatch foundation I placed for a marker. Go get a drink, then gather resources as you return back to the shade.”

With a water source nearby, the group is able to ride out the extreme heat of the afternoon. As it cools off, they spread out gathering materials to build a shelter for the night.

“What now?” ask Michael. “I suppose that it will now get freezing cold for the night.”

“Actually, it can,” answers Ahab. “The Sinai gets quite cold at night, sometimes even below freezing.”

“Look what I found,” says Cleo as she comes back with a cute little fox eared mammal perched on her shoulder. “My engram says it is a Jerboa.”

“Have you seen anything like this in the Sinai?” ask Professor Narcy.

“No,” answers Cleo. “Nothing even remotely looks like this.”

“Then, it has to be unique to this environment,” answers Professor Narcy.

“Wonder what they are good for other then for meat and hide,” ask Denny.”

“We may find out soon,” answers Michael as the Jerboa starts making a low growling sound as a darkening sky approaches.

“Looks like a storm coming in,” says Denny. “Lets get back to our shelter.”

The storm is like no other ever witnesses on Earth. Jagged bolts of lightning flash all around. We watch a nearby Joshua Tree vanish in a brilliant flash of lightning. Then, the wind comes with blowing sand followed by hail and blinding rain. As quickly as the storm hits, it is soon over with a clearing moonlit sky. As the temperature drops rapidly as we hear the Parasaurs and camel like creatures grazing nearby.

“So long as they are peacefully grazing, it should be relatively safe out there,” says Denny.

In the distance, we hear a howl of a Direwolf followed by a growl of a sabercat and the roar of some unknown creature, all coming from the direction of the canyon.

“Sounds like heading to that canyon may not be such a good idea,” says Denny. “Predators can be attracted to a watering holes like flies to garbage.”

“Excellent, we can now craft slingshots and boomerangs.” Those should prove useful for taming and defense.”

“In the morning, we should see if we can tame some of these camel like creatures,” says Michael. “They could offer us some protection from predators we may find in the canyon.”

 

Gameplay note; My character, Desert Pete, was promptly killed by a raptor when he spawned in on top of one. Upon respawn. he landed in an area clear of them and started gathering resources. He watched two Morellatops kill the raptor by pinning it against a boulder, then harvested it for the meat and hide. Then, the megaheat hit. The shelter of an overhanging cliff worked to stave off heatstroke as he crafted a Go Box and sleeping bag, but water was becoming an issue as the berries were not enough. A quick dash out found a water vein. That was enough for him to ride out the megaheat which reached 120*F at one point. Desert Peat is now doing well and has his Morellatop for transport.

 

Chapter 7. The Canyon.

It is morning when Michael walks out to check out the nearby grazing unknown creatures. “Morellatops,” says Michael when he returns to camp.

“We can now craft saddles for them,” answers Denny.

“Lets see if we can knock one out with our slingshots,” says Michael.

Finding the one by itself, Denny and Michael hit it in the head with stones only to find that it and his mate come charging after them. “Watch out, they are fast,” warns Michael as Professor Narcy and Ahab come in to help.” They are soon knocked out by the Water Vein after the male has trashed the thatch hut marker.

“This is interesting,” Michael tells the others upon close examination of the unconscious creature. “We can use their hump to store water for us.”

“A good thing,” answers Denny. “Our waterskins are useless here if we can't fill them from the jug bugs or the Water Vein.”

“We can now craft up a well to place over the Water Vein,” says Ahab. “Where can we get the chitlin needed for it?”

“Go kill some jug bugs,” answers Denny. “Be sure to take the oil from the oil ones before harvesting them.”

A well is soon built and placed where it begins to fill to capacity. Denny fills some waterskins as the taming progresses.

As noon approaches, Denny notices that the waterskin he filled earlier is almost empty. “You might as well throw those waterskins away,” he says. “They are worse then useless the way they are losing their water so rapidly.”

One of the Morellatops wakes up followed by it's mate. Walking them over to the well, Denny and Michael find that their humps are now full. “One problem solved,” says Denny. “We now have a reliable way to carry water. Lets see what else this creature can do for us.”

“Most useful,” says Michael. “They are super efficient at harvesting the bushes and cactus for resources. We'll have no problems in gathering berries, thatch, sap, even silk, and other useful items. Not only can they carry a lot on them, they appear to be quite fast. Lets get some more tamed up so everyone has a ride.”

“Primitive bow and stone arrows,” announces Helen. “Save the Narcoberries and spoiled meat. We can have tranc arrows soon.”

Just then, Cleo's Jerboa starts chirping and looking at the sky. “Everyone back to the shelter,” warns Michael as he sees the blackening sky with a massive dust cloud moving towards them”

“Sandstorm,” warns Ahab as we go inside.

“The growl before the electrical storm hit, now, the chirping and looking at the sky. Those guys must be weather forecasters,” says Michael

“That is going to be most useful,” answers Denny. “They can give us plenty of warning of changing weather conditions so we can get to shelter before it hits.”

“What makes the sandstorm so dangerous other then we can't see well?” ask Professor Narcy. “Oh, it drains our stamina by just standing in it. That's not good.”

“It appears that it does the same to our tames,” reports Michael after taking out one of the Morellatops for a short trip.

“When the storm is over, Denny and I are going to survey a route to the canyon floor and check it out,”

“Better tame a Jerboa for yourself before you head out,” says Caroline. “Pack a tent with you for shelter if you need it.”

With a tent, a newly tamed Jerboa, and armed with stone arrows, Michael and Denny head out on an exploration North as the others work on taming another pair of Morellatops.

“There is definitely water down there,” says Michael as he looks over the edge of the cliff.

“Looks like all kinds of Dire Wolves, Terror Birds, Sabercats, Carnos, and some alligator like creature I've never seen before,” says Denny. “Lets head East and see if we can find a way down. It seems to be quiet in that direction.”

Heading East, the pair find an old stone temple with a ruined alter. Nearby, a pair of scorpions are on patrol. “Lets see what these guys can do against them,” says Michael. Two scorpions soon bite the dust.

“Excellent,” says Denny as he harvested the chitlin and hide from the dead scorpions. “Very little torpor damage from that attack.”

“Here's another water vein,” says Michael. “It is certainly possible that w could set up a series of watering well in the area should we decide to set up our camp as a permanent base.”

They have located two other water veins when Denny spots something over a ridge. “Look at the size of that skeleton.”

“Just like something out of that Ridd!ck desert planet movie,” comments Michael. “Oh oh, raptors ahead.”

“Lets pin them to that wall,” answers Denny as he urges his Morellatop into a charge.

“Finally, a way down,” answers Michael after harvesting the fresh kills. “With a bit of guidance, these guys are awesome.”

Reaching the edge of the canyon, they find the area relatively free of danger and head into it to the oasis on the East end. Denny's Jarboa starts chirping about and rubbing his head like he wants to dig into the ground.

“What's bugging your pet?” ask Michael.

“Look to the East,” says Denny. “The sky and horizon is shimmering badly. A heat blast is coming out of that sand desert.”

“Lets see if we can shelter from it at the oasis,” answers Michael.

The Megaheat hits with a vengeance as the few nearby creatures seek shelter among the rocks. “156*F. That's insane.”

“Lets bring the Morellatops into the pond with us to wait out this heat.” answers Michael.

“Much better,” says Michael. “We have Coe in here as well.”

Like the first day on this Ark, the Mega Heat seems to be a daily afternoon event. It does not let up until late afternoon. We find some metal rocks nearby and harvest them.

“We better get back before it gets dark,” says Denny.

As the adventurers return, they see that the others have been busy with shelter construction with two more tamed Morellatops. “An Adobe House,” says Denny.

“We got that built just before the Megaheat hit,” answers Julia. “It made a huge difference with staying much cooler inside.”

“How was the exploration?” ask Professor Narcy.

“We found some more water veins and a small temple ruin,” answers Michael. “Our Morellatops are more then a match for the predators in the area as long as we don't try to take on too many of them at once.”

“The sand desert to the East appears to be the source of the sandstorms and Megaheat. The Jarboa gave us a warning that it was coming. We saw it distorting our view as we entered the canyon and took shelter in the oasis.”

“The Adobe hut protected us well from that last blast of heat,” answers Ahab, “Even the Sahara never get as hot as it did here. All the wild creatures hid from that last one, even our new tames huddled against our adobe shelter for protection.”

“Until we can get better protection for ourselves and our tame from the afternoon furnace, we are going to be limited to how far we can explore and forage,” answers Denny. “We should make this place home base until we can find a way back to civilization.”

“What does that mean?” ask Cleo as her Jarboa starts making crying like sounds.

“I don't know,” answers Denny. A few minutes later, with evening approaching, some clouds roll in and a gentle rain starts falling.

“Well, that's different,” answers Helen. “Our little weather forecasters must have a specific sound for every weather event.”

“Lets plan to gather more resources tomorrow so we can tame a Morellatop for everyone,” says Michael. “Then, we can plan for some extended expeditions together and look for a way out of this awful place.”

 

My gameplay has so far been to establish a camp where I can shelter from the extremes in weather. That was complicated the other day by five raptors that moved into the area. Morley and I were able to deal with them but we lost so much time that we were caught unprepared for the Megaheat that afternoon. It was death by heatstroke in 30 seconds.

Now, I have a tent and an adobe shelter upgrade. At Level 31, I now have metal tools and a crossbow.

The cactus that can be hand picked for sap yielded 300 cactus sap with one swipe from Morley's tail. A tamed Doedicurus can collect a hundred sand in one tail swipe on 4X. That has solved the problem of making adobe structures. Cactus sap has a short shelf so it is best to collect only what is needed for crafting.

As of 9-10-16. I have the Jarboa, a mate boosted pair of Morellatops, and the Doedicurus. With the tent, I am ready to go down to the canyon to check for resources.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 8. The Center Primitive Adventurers.

 

With the high requirement for Cementing Paste for crafting and the limited number of Tribolites on the small islands to get chitlin from, an expedition to South Jungle Island is planned. According to The Survivor's handbook, there are beaver dams in the ponds on the south slope. So, we plan to check it out and raid them for the resources.

The mission is dangerous enough that Joe, Tod, Sarah, and myself will conduct it. “This is not a mission for our newcomers,” I announce. “Beavers are extremely defensive of their lodges. We have to sneak in, grab the cementing paste, and bug out before they attack us. There is also a chance that the Giga we saw the other day may show up. If it does, we may have to go to the Center Island.”

We take one of the rafts with Joe sailing it. I make an exception to the newcomer rule and let Chief Terry come along on the 4th pteradon. “We'll circle around the pond landing next to the lodge where the beavers are not,” I tell the Chief. “We will have a couple of seconds to grab only the cementing paste and rare flowers. Do not take any of the wood. It is much too heavy to attempt to make a fast getaway.”

Joe finds one of the deserted islands to park the raft as the rest of us head inland to find the ponds. We find one near the shore. “One at a time go down to a lodge while the others watch,” I say. “If you can, land on top of it.”

Sarah goes down first making a successful landing on the lodge near the shore. The beavers rush in to attack but she is gone before they get there. That leaves the lodge on the far end unprotected as Tod goes after it. Chief Terry successfully raids another. I see him dump wood as his pteradon struggles to take off. He is quick enough to lighten the load before the angry beavers can reach him.

I go next having just enough time to get the cementing paste when I see the Giga coming in to attack as Tod shouts a warning. I am out of there in time as the Giga goes after the beavers wiping them and their lodges out.

“We got that just in time,”I say to the others as we fly back to the raft.

“Lets hope that it hasn't destroyed the other ponds,” answers Joe as we unload the cementing paste and rare flowers to storage on the raft.

We conduct another raid on the pond further up the hill. Coming back, we see another pond that had dead beavers and smashed lodges everywhere. We find the Giga busy nearby in a fight with several herbivores that soon bite the dust.

“That thing is a killing machine,” says Chief Terry. “It just kills and leaves the bodies.”

“I hope that we don't have to deal with it,” I answer. “We won't have the ability to make the weapons capable of taking one down.”

With the storage boxes on the raft packed full of cementing paste, we head back to home base.

“We managed to raid two of the three ponds on South Jungle.” I tell Mary. “But, we won't be able to use those ponds again for a long while. That Giga we saw the other day has wiped two of them out already.”

“We did fill all of the storage crates on the raft with cementing paste,” says Joe, “and we got a bunch of rare flowers as well.”

“That should be more then enough for our needs,” answers Mary.

“Just in case, we should establish outposts on Secluded Island and near The Center so we can get cementing paste from the beaver dams up there.” I answer back.

“Good idea,” answers Mary. “It will give the others something to do as we work here to build a sustainable village for our pioneering study.”

Mary, Dr Sanders, Chief Terry, and Pauline continue work on the pioneering village. Interesting that a tepee tent is one of the crafting items which Chief Terry checks out. The four of them discuses what pioneering life must have been like as the rest of us head on the raft to establish the outposts.

We stop at the south outpost crafting up enough materials to build the structures for the outpost. A short stop on Skull Island gives us a storage crate full of metal so we can construct the Smithy for them. As of the last trip, that island is lacking of any danger.

We set up the outpost at the large crag on Secluded Island, place down a spawn bed, refining forge, storage containers, grindstone, etc.. and get some metal cooking for a Smithy and clay for bricks. We are soon able to craft a second set of those items for the Tundra outpost.

“What are those oversize seagulls?” ask Christina.

“They are Pellagoris.” I answer. “Probably the largest flying feather creature to ever live on earth.

“Can they be tamed?” ask Christina.

“Yes,” I answer. “There is a saddle for them. They are the only flying creature in Ark that can land on the water. Their limitation is a weak attack and the ability to carry a lot of weight.”

“Right now, we don't have any fish for them, so taming will have to be done another day.”

“Meanwhile, if one lands on the beach to rest, you can get pretty close to them to examine one.”

It is the next morning when we load up the two rafts to establish the Tundra outpost. By noon, we have constructed the outpost and crafted up some more fence foundations and other materials.

“Can we go over to the Tundra and see what it looks like?” ask Mike.

If it doesn't get too cold, we can check it out.” I answer. “We just need to watch out for the wolves.”

The weather turns hot as we sail over the short distance to the Tundra. It cools down comfortably as we reach the shore.

“The Ark Gods are smiling on us today,” I comment. “It is usually quite cold here.”

“Are those Dire Wolves I see in the distance?” ask Christina.

“Yes,” I answer. “And a unusually large pack of them.”

“We better leave before they spot us,” warns Joe.

I put the spotting scope on them as I count 12 in the pack. “You are not going to believe this,” I tell the others and then whistle to call the pack to us. “These are our tames from our last visit.” With that, each of us soon have two happy Direwolves mauling us for attention.

“How is that possible,” ask Tod. “Didn't the Traska Tribe take all of our tames with them for our care?”

“Yes they did,” I answer. “But we had left the dire wolf pack here to live independent from us.”

“We should bring them back with us,” answers Sarah. “But, how are we going to fit so many of them on our two rafts?”

“Lets make a ferry from the spare raft that is big enough to take them all,” I answer. “We can place foundations and ceilings on it with a loading ramp and place them in a 3 by 4 formation.”

As the materials are already on board the two rafts, we place down the spare and craft the platform that will hold them all. With the wolves loaded in a 3x4 formation, there is enough room for me to pilot the raft at the others sail back with me for home base.

We are greeted by a surprised Mary as we ride back into the growing village with all of the Dire Wolves. “What did you guys do, go on a wolf taming spree?”

“No,” I answer, “These are our tames from our last visit.”

“I thought that Traska was going to care for all of our tames.” says Dr Sanders.

“Apparently, we forgot to tell him about our wolf pack,” I answer.

“I have heard about them in our legends,” answers Chief Terry.

“They are every bit as cunning and dangerous as the ones that roamed Earth in prehistoric time,” I answer. “Our tames are gentle and intelligent enough to be ridden without saddles. They will defend you to the death. We lost two of them on our last visit when we were surprised by a pack of four high level Allasaurs over in the Redwood Forest. Even though we were armed with high powered rifles with tranc darts at the time, it was still a tough battle.”

“Well, lets settle in for the night,” answers Mary. “Then, we can show you in the morning how we are progressing with our pioneering experiment.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 9. Back at the Dry Wash Camp.

 

The sun comes out bright and hot as it burns off the freezing chill of the night before. Michael's tribe get their assignments where to gather resources as Denny and Julia go looking for another pair of Morellatops to tame and find them close by. Ahab and Cleo take their two Morellotops down to the canyon to find more metal. With stone building materials now available, a pen is being built to protect the tames from the roaming raptors. The cliff above is fenced off to protect that side of the camp. “Metal tools,” announces Denny as the tribe reaches Level 25.

“We have a problem,” announces Michael who is supervising the pen construction. “Our Morellotops are too fat to fit through a dino gate. We will need a larger one.”

“Lets go tame a Dodicerous,” says Julia. “Soon as we get the saddle, we can use it to speed up stone and sand harvesting.”

“Lets get one of the Parcers as well,” says Caroline. “We can use it for a pack animal.”

The weather cooperates as the tribe conducts the difficult job of dropping a Parcer and Dodicerous to tame. Professor Narcy and Helen take care of the taming process with their newly tamed Morellotops nearby. They take turns shuttling wood back to the base and babysitting the taming creatures.

With the Dodicerous tamed, he is put to work on the boulders where he quickly gathers the stone needed for the Behemoth Gate. With the Parcer tamed they both bring back a crafted gate along with a ton of sand and several hundred cactus sap. The pen is soon finished with the big gate and the second smaller one by the cliff.

“We saw what looked like a pair of wolves up on the ridge,” announces Ahab as he and Cleo come back from the canyon.

“If they are Direwolves, that would be excellent,” says Michael. “When we get some crossbows crafted up, we need to go tame them. That will give us some fast recon mounts that can hold their own against the raptors and other predators out there. Denny and I will go after them first thing in the morning.”

“We can now make a complete set of desert clothes for everyone,” announces Julia. “We only need some more silk from those purple flowers. The goggles will have to wait until we can crystal and pearl.”

“We saw pearls in the pond while getting metal ore, but no crystal” says Ahab.

“We'll probably have to go up into the mountain to get it,” answers Michael. “Lets do that after we tame the wolves.”

As evening approaches the camp Jarboas go crazy growling at the sky. It soon blackens as jagged bolts of lightning light up the horizon. “Better get everybody inside,” says Michael. “It is going to get nasty out here.”

The storm soon hits with blowing sand but little rain. One jagged bolt of lightning hits the stone wall above the cliff sending bits of hot stone splattering around the shelter. Another bolt hits at the well. All the tames huddle against the wall and shelter in order to escape the worst effects of the storm.

Like before, as quickly as it arrives, it blows out leaving a cold starry night in its wake. The Direwolves on the ridge howl at the rising moon.

In the morning Michael and Denny go to check on the well. “It's been damaged by last night's storm,” says Michael after inspecting it. “We can't get water from it.”

“Our specimen implant says we need building material items to repair this,” answers Denny. “We should have those back in the camp.”

Fixing the well, Denny spots a dead Parasaur nearby. “Must have been hit by that lightning bolt during the storm,” comments Denny.

“Here is the raw meat we need for the wolf tame,” answers Michael.

Meeting with the others as they come down for water, Michael tells them what happened last night. “We were lucky to repair the well last night,” he tells the others. “Until we can safely set up a base in the Oasis, we should place a backup well over the water vein by those ruins.”

“We'll get to work on that before we continue crafting more adobe building materials,” answers Professor Narcy.

Armed with crossbows, raw meat, and trancs, Denny and Michael head up to the ridge in search of the wolves. “Yep, they are Direwolves,” says Denny.

“Lets get up on this boulder and bait them to us,” says Michael.

The take down and tame goes as before with Michael and Denny having a pair of mate boosted Direwolves by noon.

“We should take them up to the nearby peak to find some crystal.” says Denny.

“Lets go bring a tent along so we don't get caught by the Megaheat,” answers Michael.

Heading West, they soon start climbing up a path in the mountain, dodging and occasionally getting into fights with the predators in the area. “Why so many Terror Birds?” ask Denny.

“Finally, we have crystal,” answers Michael.

“We also have sulfur,” says Michael as they get to work.

Nearly done Denny spots an odd yellow colored boulder. “Michael, what is this?”

Approaching it the ground suddenly shakes as the odd colored boulder comes to life transforming into a giant rock creature. “Lets get out of here,” shouts Michael as the two of them run to their wolves.

“Incoming” yells Denny as a huge boulder comes flying towards them. Michael's wolf yelps in surprise as the boulder hits to the side missing them by inches.

“Watch out, there is another one to the side,” warns Michael.

Fortunately, the rock monsters are too slow to catch them. It soon loses interest and returns to its boulder shape.

It is getting mid afternoon and getting brutally hot as Michael and Denny return to the shelter of camp. After taking the wolves down to the well so they can get a drink, they bring them into the adobe shelter for Ahab and Cleo to examine up close. Then, they tell Professor Narcy about the rock creature that nearly killed them.

“Rock Elementals,” answers Professor Narcy. “They are not suppose to exist.”

“Neither do Morellatops, this variety of Jarboas, Jug Bugs, or moths big enough to fly on,” answers Ahab.

“He's right,” answers Caroline. “This ark has creatures that can't possibly be from Earth's past but have to be from some alien desert world.”

“Then, we will have to be extra careful when we go exploring,” answers Michael. “Those skeletons we have seen are far larger then any Titansaur we saw on The Island. We have yet to explore the canyon or sand desert in the distance. No telling what else will show up out there.”

As the temperature cools off, Denny and Michael make a quick run to the oasis in the canyon where they find pearls in the water and shore line. Heading back, they kill another pair of raptors that decide to press their luck. With the wolves well fed, they head back to camp for the night. By morning, there are spotting scopes and desert helmets.

“We have enough supplies to build an outpost at the oasis,” announces Michael.

“Then, lets do it,” answers Denny. “The oasis and canyon will offer us better shelter from the heat and storms then up here. We can use it as a base to find our way out of this Ark.”

Packing everything on the tames, the caravan heads the short trip to the oasis below. A suitable place has been located on the last visit as the tribe sets to clearing the area placing down an adobe hut for shelter, then an expanded pen with an adobe barn for the tames.

It is mid afternoon when all of the work is done. Ahab and Cleo have been out exploring along the canyon towards the North. They have taken along crossbows and tranc arrows and have managed to avoid combat with the area raptors and sabercats when they spot some ruins blocking a sandstone wash entrance.

“Why would there be a structure built across this,” ask Cleo.

“Unknown,” answers Ahab. “The door is broken but it looks too dark to explore for now. We can come back with the others.”

“What is that strange looking lizard?” ask Cleo. “OW! OW! OW! It just pitched quills at me.”

“Tranc it!” yells Ahab as it comes running towards them. It soon drops from the effect of the trancs.

“A Thorny Dragon,” answers Cleo as she pulls the quills out of her arms and legs. “And, it is tame able.”

“Raptor!” warns Ahab as both of them grab their pikes to dispatch it quickly. “It has stone and tranc arrows,”as he harvest it for the meat and hide.

“At least, we have meat for taming this.”

“He actually looks quite cute,” says Cleo. “Can we make a saddle for it?”

“Not here,” replies Ahab after checking the requirements. “It requires a Smithy.”

It is getting close to evening when Michael and Denny come looking for them on their direwolves. “What is that thing?” ask Michael.

“A Thorny Dragon,” answers Cleo. “It is just about tamed.”

“This place gets all the more weird the longer we are here,” comments Denny as the dragon wakes up tamed.

“Well, lets bring it back to camp and see if we can craft a saddle for it,” answers Michael. “Then, we can make plans to explore that sandstone canyon you discovered.”

“How was your trip in the other direction?” ask Ahab as they start heading back.

“We found a vast sand dune desert,” answers Michael. “It was getting too hot to go check out the dome stone structure near the horizon. We will check it out early in the morning when it is cooler out.”

Back in the oasis camp, everyone checks out the Thorny Dragon. “There is nothing like this in Earth's History,” comments Professor Narcy. Michael checks out the crafting requirements for the saddle. “A lot of stuff, but doable. I'll get one built.”

Placing the saddle on the newly tamed Thorny Dragon, Michael notices something unusual about it. “This is a good find,” he announces. “This saddle appears to be a mobile Smithy. We can use it to repair our desert outfits and our metal gear.”

 

Chapter 10 The Dome Ruins.

It is early morning as Michael and Denny leave on the wolves to the Dune Desert. The have managed to craft up some canteens that hold more water much better then the nearly useless water skins. A tent is packed on one wolf just in case their Jarboa warns them of approaching sandstorm or mega heat. With berries for food, they head off Southeast down the canyon to the Dune Desert in the distance.

“How desolate,” comments Denny as they enter the dunes with its blowing shifting sand. “Except for the dome ruins, there is nothing as far as the eye can see.”

“We'll keep the Obelisk behind us for a bearing,” says Michael.

“Well, there are some living things out here even if most of it is not friendly,” says Denny. “Looks like scorpions, snakes, dung beetles, those giant centipedes, and even praying mantis.”

“Some water jug bugs too,” says Michael. “What the Hell!” as the ground suddenly starts shaking as a mound of sand starts heading their way.

“Run to the dome!” yells Denny as a huge worm like creature explodes out of the sand and crashed back into it just behind them. Both wolves bolt in full panic towards the dome ruins where the sand ends in solid ground.

In the safety of the stone ruins they dismount their frightened wolves and attempt to calm them down. “You got to be kidding,” comments Michael when he is finally able to leave his wolf and place a spotting scope on the giant sand creature.

“I see another,” says Denny. “They appear to be called Death Worms.”

“They look like the giant sand worms of the movie Dune,” says Michael. “Our movement must have triggered them to attack.”

“There is even an alpha variant of them,” answers Denny as he spots an orange glowing one further out. “Thank goodness they haven't followed us to solid ground,” Denny's Jarboa starts growling at the ever darkening sky.

“Just what we don't need at this time, a blinding electrical storm.” says Michael.

“Lets shelter in the dome structure,” Denny responds.

As the storm rages all around them and the wolves start calming down, Michael starts looking around to assess their tactical position. The dome structure appears to be providing them with needed protection.

“There appears to be a tunnel behind this door frame going into the cellar,” says Michael. “We should explore it while we are stranded here.”

“Oh, oh,” answers Denny. “Our wolves won't fit through that narrow opening.”

“Lets unpack the tent and spare items just in case something scares them away,” answers Michael.

With the spares and tent placed in storage, Michael and Denny start down the long winding passage that opens up into several rooms where holes in the ceilings let in light and a shower of sifting sand. One such room has a huge stone wall complete with an Egyptian mural painted on the wall.

“Really interesting,” comments Denny. “Professor Narcy would like to study this.”

They head further down into the cave system where the temperature is all over the place. “Crazy,” says Denny. “Hot, then freezing cold.”

As the passage opens up into a huge cavern with a huge pit and more ruins up way ahead, the ground seems to come alive with movement. Scorpions, bats, Titanboas, the giant centipedes, even several smaller Rock Elemental start appearing from everywhere. “Time to leave and quickly,” says Michael as they both start running as fast as they can, dodging boulders being thrown at them, the way they came into the cavern.

Making it back to the wall painting room, they slow down to rest and look behind them. “Doesn't appear to be anything coming up after us,” comments Michael.

“Good thing,” answers Denny. “We certainly don't have the firepower to deal with that.”

Coming back to the cellar the weather has now cleared, but it is now high noon and Denny's Jarboa is warning of mega heat on the way. “Too far to chance running the dunes back to the canyon,” says Michael. “Lets check out this area before we are forced to shelter.”

“Excellent, Jug Bugs. Lets get them so we have water and something to feed our wolves with. Their meat has all spoiled from this heat.”

“Here is a salt deposit,” says Denny. “Lets bring some of it back so we can craft preserving salts.”

“Time to shelter from the mega heat,” says Michael. “Lets hope that it cools off by the afternoon so we can get back before dark.”

It is late afternoon by the time the mega heat goes away. The shelter of the dome structure has provided them with sufficient cooling that the tent didn't have to be pitched. “We can probably leave the tent and extra items behind,” says Denny. “It should let us bring back the salt without encumbering the wolves with its weight.”

“I agree,” answers Michael. “We need to move quickly in case those death worms show up.”

“Lets run the ridge back,” Denny responds. “It will give us a good view of any trouble ahead.”

It is late evening as Michael and Denny make it back to the edge of the Dune Desert. They are met by Ahab and Cleo on a mated pair of Spiny Dragons with Professor Narcy and Helen on a pair of Morellotops.

“Where have you been?” ask Professor Narcy. “Your wives have been worried sick about you.”

“Have any of you ever watched the sci fi movies called Dune and Tremers?” ask Denny.

“I have,” answers Helen. “Are you telling us that there are sand worms out there?”

“We sure did see something like them and just as huge,” answers Denny. “As we barely outran them on the wolves, your little caravan would have been their instant lunch. We not only saw three of them, we saw an alpha variant. They are as huge as those in the Dune movie but look like the ones in Tremers. We were only able to escape them by sheltering in the dome ruins which is built on solid rock. Between the storm and mega heat, we were trapped there until it started cooling off.”

“Have you any spare raw meat on you for our wolves?

“Yes,” answers Ahab. “Take some off of the spiny dragons.”

“We also found a wall with an Egyptian painting on it in a cave under the Rock Dome. There was a cavern further on with extensive Egyptian ruins in it but we were chased out by an overwhelming force of cave predators and rock elemental.”

“We had the same issue with a cave we found in the sandstone canyon,” answers Ahab. “We had to walk in it since it was blocked with a narrow doorway. We didn't fully explore the canyon but it looks like that it has a couple of outlets that we can ride tames down into.”

“Lets get back before it gets totally dark out,” says Michael “Then, we can trade stories of our adventures today. We found a salt deposit out there. Hopefully, we can use it to make preserving salts for this raw, cooked meat, and other items that spoil so quickly.”

 

On game play on the You Tube videos, a team of two, heavily armed with flame throwers, homing rockets, assault rifles, and compound bows with metal arrows, went into the cave of the Dome Ruin. They met very heavy resistance in the huge chamber where a dead end passage led to a freezing room with the artifact. They got to it but used up all of their ammo fighting off rubble elementals and wave after wave of snakes, centipedes, scorpions, bats, and other creatures. Only one of them made it out alive.

The Sandstone Cave is also a location for another artifact. It too is well defended by the same creatures as are found in the Dome Ruin cave.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 11. On The Center.

 

In the morning, Mary conducts the tour of explaining the new items we have available in our Primitive Plus village.

“The Lumber Station, a portable sawmill, has allowed us to saw up the trees into boards and planks that we can use for building many new items. Those include the Apiary for the wild bees we have found in the area, complete structures out of lumber, storage boxes, wood cabinets, a water well and a windmill.”

“The wild creatures have been giving us poultry, fish, spare ribs, bacon, and fats in addition to fresh and prime meat. The fish traps have worked well for catching coe and salmon.”

“Our crop plots have been growing many new varieties of food who's seeds have been found growing wild in this area. Those have been grains such as barley, rice, wheat which we can use for bread and other prepared foods. We will soon have fresh vegetables such as tomatoes, cabbage, carrots, maze, and other similar foods. There is even sugar cane and grapes. There are also cashew, tea plants, coffee, and tobacco.”

“We can refine the sugar cane to sugar and produce juices and jellys from the berries we and our herbivore tames rely on.”

“The bee apiary are producing honey and bees wax which has been useful for making candles. And, Dr Sanders will be able to craft beer and wine from the grains and grapes.”

“The leather rack has been turning hide into leather which has been most useful for making durable leather goods.”

“With the new raw materials, we have been able to make cement and brick to add to our ability to construct comfortable pioneer housing.”

“The tepee is a tent that serves as a sleeping bag and can be picked up and placed where needed. Unlike a sleeping bag, anyone in the tribe can use it.”

“Looks like we are going to be kept quite busy with construction and farming,” says Joe.

“Lots of gathering and composting for farming,” I answer.

“We could place compost bins on the several close by island.” answers Tod. “That would speed up making compost where it is easier to find poop for the bins.”

“I could see using that one nearby uninhabited island for farming” answers Chief Terry. “You wouldn't have to worry about a parasaur or trike stepping in the plots.”

“There are plenty of resources on that island for crafting the plots and irrigation system,” I answer. “We could get a team with Mary going on that while the rest of us place down composting bins on the small inhabited ones to get the fertilizer we need for the crops.”

That became the plan with Mary, Dr Sanders, Chief Terry and Pauline heading to the uninhabited island to construct crop plots with an irrigation system. The rest of us head to the inhabited small island to set up compost bins and pack them with thatch and poop. We tame a second Ankylo to get the needed stone, flint, and claystone as Mary has taken our other one to get stone for the crop plots.

The project takes several days to get the fertilizer needed for the extensive garden, but, the crops are soon under way heading towards maturity in this accelerated environment.

Meanwhile, after several trips to get limestone from the cliff above, the brick making is coming along just fine. A stone fence is extended for the tames. A main shop and bakery is built from brick and wood. Individual huts are constructed from similar materials.

In no time, our little pioneer village is finish with a harvest coming in from the nearby island allowing us to expand our food to include many of the pioneer prepared meals of both the European Settlers and Native Americans.

In our evening meeting, we lay plans on what we should do next. “The Keepers have said that on this visit we would be divided into two groups to see how we would handle life in a primitive environment.” says Mary. “I wonder if it is time to start looking for them.”

“Professor Narcy told me that he would be working on an archaeology study in Egypt.” answers Dr Sanders. “He was taking a digging team supervised with two Cairo University graduate to excavate a newly discovered ruins in the Sinai Desert.”

“Michael told me that he, Caroline, Denny, and Julia would be visiting Egypt to test their survival skills,” answers Joe. “I wouldn't be surprised that they hooked up with Professor Narcy.”

“Then, they could possibly be somewhere on The Center,” I answer.

“Most likely, on one of the distant lands,” answers Joe. “Otherwise, we should have seen them by now.”

“Then, lets conduct a detailed search of The Center before we attempt to sail past the boundary of this Ark,” I answer.

 

Chapter 12. New Biomes on The Center.

In the morning, we organize the search parties. Dr Sanders, Chief Terry, Pauline and I, are going to take the Pteradons inland to explore the river shoreline and ruins. Tod, Mary, Mike, and Christina are going to take the ferry raft with the wolf pack and search the entire tundra area starting at the North. Joe and Mary plan on taking the supply raft to sail around the volcano islands and as far North as they can go. They take the raptors with them. There has been another time quake during the night, so, we need to find out what has changed in our Ark at this time.

Traveling light with only the basic weapons in metal and the crossbow with trancs, my group heads West towards the entrance to the Center of the Ark. I want to show Chief Terry this entrance to an underground world. We need to check if the others may be camped down there somewhere. The area is clear of any wild Argys. Flying over it, I find that my pteradon is not afraid of the confines of the shaft, so, I tell everyone to light a torch and follow me.

“So much easier flying down then using grappling hooks and fighting all of the creature below,” says Dr Sanders.

“We'll be fine so long as we don't agro the bats,” I answer.

We land at the shaft base to rest the fliers, then head down the long tunnel flying above the snakes, spiders, scorpions, and avoiding the occasional bat. We soon find the giant mushrooms, then see the glow of the central cavern ahead.

“Is that a structure over there to the left?” ask Chief Terry.

“Lets check it out,” I answer.

Landing, I discover that the camp is over a year old. “Nothing new,” I announce. “This is our old camp for repairing our metal tools from our last visit. There are no signs that anyone has been here since.”

“ Lets continue on,” says Dr Sanders.

“Here is that West tunnel, it look bigger then it was when we could only walk through it the last time? And, there is a stream flowing into it from the cavern lake.”

Flying down the now larger tunnel, we find the stream terminates into a large lake where there are waterfalls cascading down into it from all sides. “We are under The Floating Island,” I announce. “Lets rest here for a bit but watch out for leaches. They can sometime fall down from the swamp above.”

There is a tremendous splash close by as we all get soaked by the spray. A frightened Parcer scrambles out of the water as we scatter to avoid being stepped on. It runs over to the entrance of the cave where it stops to looks at us, then collapses unconscious. Several Coe and Piranha are tossed up on the shore by the wave. Our Pteradons go on a feast as we spear the ones in the edge of the water for additional food.

Checking out the unconscious Parcer, I determine that it has been in a fight with Titanboas above and had ran off when its torpor went way up from being bitten several times. “We could tame it,” I announce. “But, then there is no way to get it out of here.”

“Could we stay here for the night to make sure no harm comes of it while it remains unconscious?” ask Pauline.

“This would be as good a place as any,” I answer. “Better place some berries in its inventory so it doesn't starve. Chances are you are going to have a big friendly pet by morning.”

We fly up to explore the caravans on the floating island finding many new and interesting things in them. With darkness approaching, we head back to the unconscious Parcer and set up camp for the night.

As morning arrives the Parcer wakes up becoming a pest for attention around Pauline. “You are right,” says Pauline. “Such a big affectionate pet.”

“He would be quite useful if we could find a way to get him back to camp,” I answer.

Just then, we see four riders dressed in Fur Armor with a pack of ten dire wolves approach us from the West. It is Tod's group who has found a way down to where we are.

“We thought you were the others,” answers Tod. “How did you get down here with a parcer?”

“We found another way into the underground center,” I answer. “The Parcer fell from the swamp after being attacked by Titanboas. How did you get down here?”

“We found a major addition to Land's End,” answers Tod. “At first, we could see extensive details in the inaccessible terrain way below. Then, we found a shelf of terrain by the big waterfalls that extends along the cliff. We came down a ramp along the cliff to the shelf. Following it North, we ended up in a huge cave containing an ice palace. A tunnel with a stream flowing out of it continued East until we ended up here.”

“Do you think that the tunnel is big enough for the Parcer to go through?” I ask.

“Yes,” answers Tod.

“Excellent,” I say. “We can pack cementing paste on him from the beaver lodges above, have one of you can take him back to base with the ferry, then sail it back to the South Tundra to pick up the others.”

That becomes the plan for the morning as we gather cementing paste for the Parcer. Sarah takes him back to the base as the others continue their search of the new area. We fly along the West past Penguin Pond looking for any signs of a camp or outpost. With evening approaching, we head back to the camp in the lake below the floating island for the night.

In the morning, we find a cave on the north side of the circular waterfalls. It doesn't contain anything of interest. We then head back along the ruins of the rivers that separate the Jungle Islands.

We find where the Dire Bears have been hiding on this visit. Several small caves have appeared along the rivers. The bears have been hibernating in them in groups of 3 to 5. As we don't need any at this time, we leave them alone.

Arriving back on North Tropical, we are greeted by the Parcer who has missed us after being left at the village. “He sure does miss being the center of attention,” says Pauline.

“The only thing worse is a pack of happy Dire Wolves,” I answer. “It is bath time if you have been gone for a while.”

About then, Tod's group arrives and we get mobbed by the dire wolf pack. “Told you so,” I say as we all share in their affection.

“We finished exploring all the new terrain as far as the Redwood Forest,” reports Tod. “Then, we sailed along the shoreline of the redwood forest looking for any signs of a camp. We found the old outpost up on the cliff to the East, but no signs of any activity.”

“Then, it is safe to say that the others are not on The Center Ark unless Mary has found them on Volcano, Half Burnt, or Scorched Island.” I answer. “If they were there, we would have known about it days after we got established here.”

It is mid morning when Joe and Mary finally get back from their search minus their raptors. “What happened?” I ask.

“After circling Half Burnt and Volcano Island, we decided to sail North to the island on the horizon. After sailing most of the day, we landed on a beach of a sand dune desert with mountains on the horizon with an Obelisk in the distance. We built a marker tower on top of a big dune, then rode the raptors inland to a dome structure in the distance. A massive electrical storm started coming our way so we took shelter in the dome for the night.”

“In the morning, we found evidence that Michael and Denny had been at the dome a couple of days earlier. They had left a note in a storage crate telling us that Professor Narcy, his wife Helen, Caroline, Julia, and two Cairo University graduate students, Ahab and Cleo were with them back in the canyon at an oasis. We found two sets of Dire Wolf track inside of the dome ruins, so, it appears that they may have been their tames.”

“During the night, our canteens lost all of their water to evaporation and all of the meat spoiled on the raptors. We found something called Jug Bugs which gave us water and some food for the raptors. Then, we got pinned down by a raging sandstorm followed by heat so bad that our Gille Armor could barely protect us from it.”

“Towards late afternoon, when it had cooled off some, we made a dash back to the coastline and the raft. It is a good thing we placed the marker on the sand dune or we would have not made it back.”

“Just before reaching it, the ground started shaking as a mound of sand started moving rapidly towards us. A huge sand worm burst from the dune causing the raptors to buck us off in a panic. The sand worm went after them as we ran for the beach. They were both killed when it came up from behind and landed on top of them. We made it back only because the sand worm could not travel on the solid ground of the beach to get to us.”

“Then, we need to go back and find the others once we are better prepared to deal with the desert heat and sand worms,” I answer.

“Dire Wolves are faster runners with much more endurance then raptors,” answers Dr Sanders. “They may be why Michael and Denny had them for tames.”

“Foxes and coyotes are natural desert animals of the Southwest,” answers Chief Terry. “The Dire Wolves are likely their ancestors that can just as easily tolerate the heat using their fur as a natural insulation.”

“Then, they are a natural to use for our transport.” I answer. “We only need some fliers for long range survey that are tough and can carry a lot of weigh. We will need a pair of leveled up Argys before we make the trip.”

Joe and I head over to the peak of Mid Jungle Island where we spot a pair of mid level ones. We play Argy tag dropping both with crossbow tranc arrows in short order. “We got a pair of good ones,” I tell Joe.

“We will see what the stats are when tamed,” answers Joe “and go from there.”

By afternoon, a mated pair is tamed with good stats of what we are looking for in endurance, weight and speed. We take them both out to level up further over on Half Burnt Island where we clear out the raptors, scorpions, saber tooth tigers and gang attack a carno.

Landing back at the village, I tell Mary, “Horror and Terror are now ready for that trip to the desert to find the others.”

“Then, we will get prepared to deal with the desert heat and take along preserved foods for us and our wolf pack,” answers Mary.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 13. The Cursed Land of Scorched Earth.

 

Back at the oasis camp, Michael and Denny recover from their ordeal of the day before. “We left a note with a map in case the others finds the Dome Ruins.” says Michael. “When we left The Center last year, the airship captain told us that we would come back to Ark as two separate groups that would later get together.”

“He did say that it would be a primitive environment,” answers Denny. “He just never mentioned that it would be such a dangerous world as this.”

“We need to have some flying creatures for recon from above, something much faster and stronger then the moths,” answers Michael. “I did see Argys in the mountains just before we ran into those stone creatures. We should go back and tame up a pair.”

“It's going to have to be done the hard way,” answers Julia. “There is no way to make Argy kibble under these harsh conditions.”

“Then, it is tranc arrows and crossbows.” answers Michael. “We can have Ahab and Cleo follow us on the Morellotops with a spare tent and Argy saddles. Our wolves can get the raw meat from the local wildlife as we need it.”

Taking a spare well with them, as they know the location of a water vein at the foot of the mountain they are headed for, the caravan starts off for the place where they gathered crystal and sulfur days earlier. With the wolves on passive, they look for a safe place to lure in the two Argys they want, and crossbow tag them until they drop.

Ahab and Cleo set up camp next to the downed Argys just as Michael's Jerboa growls a warning of a coming sandstorm. “We better get extra meat quick before the storm hits.” They clean out the nearby raptors below and drop a sabretooth above before the storm hits.

It is early night into the tame when the Jerboa gives out another warning of mega heat. Being already cold and getting colder, the mega heat only serves to bring up the temperature to a more comfortable level.

By morning, there is a tamed mate boosted pair of Argys.

After stopping at the well for water, Michael sends Ahab and Cleo back to the oasis base with the wolves and Morellotops. “We'll level up the Argys, do a quick areal survey, and see you back at base by noon.”

From the air, the land of Scorched Earth shows it's vast size and variety. The view to the Southeast to the Dome Ruins shows the vastness of the Dune Desert. They spot several small structures that were missed during the trip with the wolves to the dome. Three hidden water veins are found along with a small pond st the edge of the desert.

Flying along the canyon back to base, Michael spots another way into the sandstone canyon. “This way isn't blocked by anything. It's big enough to fly through or ride in with our tames.”

“Better get back to the oasis,” answers Denny. “I'm getting a storm warning from my Jerboa.”

“Lets fly through the sandstone canyon,” answers Michael. “That should be the quickest way back and we should get some protection from the storm as well.”

The storm hits as they enter the canyon from the East. It provides much needed protection as the wind howls from above with lightning flashes lighting up the interior as the thunder echos through the canyon and the sand starts filtering down. Reaching the stone gate barrier, Michael and Denny are finally forced to land until the storm ends.

“Where were you?” ask Caroline when they finally are able to return late afternoon.

“We were forced to take shelter in the Sandstone Canyon until the storm ended,” answers Michael. “Our Argys couldn't fly in those conditions. We did find a back way in that is not obstructed with a gate.”

“We also found other water sources and a small pond on the path to the Dome Ruins. There are also several other ruins scattered about. We also spotted several other spots with vegetation in the vast Dune Desert. The Argys are proving to be good scouts.”

“We have located a map of this place called Scorched Earth,” announces Professor Narcy. “Cleo and Ahab found it in an abandoned structure next to the huge skeleton when they were out gathering oil from the Jug Bugs.”

After a moment of examining the map, Michael reports, “If the others are here with us, it is going to be difficult to find their camp given the number of ruins we are finding so far. We will continue our search in the morning by heading north through the canyon into the Dune Desert of the North.”

It turns into a dark and stormy night as a sandstorm comes blowing through. Then, it is another mega heat warning. Since the temperature is below freezing when it hits, the results are a night with the temperature warmed up to the mid 70s F.

As the sun starts coming up, Michael and Denny, take out the Argys for a quick hunt for their food, then head to the canyon to fly North to the Sand Desert.

“Looks quite busy down there with all the creatures,” comments Michael.

“Watering places have a habit of attracting the wildlife,” answers Denny. “Incredible, there is even a waterfalls coming out of the cliff side to the ponds below”

The end of the canyon comes up as they enter the Dune Desert.

“Do those look like giant mantis down there?” ask Denny.

“They sure are,” answers Michael after placing a spotting scope on them. “Lots of vultures here as well.”

“I see some vegetation to the Northeast,” says Denny. “We should check it out.”

“Oh, oh,” says Michael. “Here is the force field. Yet, I see a Death Worm and other predators way past it.”

“It must be there to limit our range,” answers Denny. “At least, this little patch of green appears accessible. And, there is a water vein we can place the spare well on.”

“Then, lets rest there for a bit until we have water for us and the Argys,” answers Michael.

It is noon by the time Michael and Denny are ready to leave. “Lets head for the Green Obelisk and hope we don't run into the Mega Heat”

On the way, Michael spots something shiny by a sand dune. “That looks like a deep sea loot crate,” comments Michael. “Watch out for sand worms while I land to check it out.” A few seconds later, Michael returns leaving the loot crate undisturbed.

“What was in it?” ask Denny.

“Would you believe a Ramshackle Plesiosaur saddle?” answers Michael.

“That is totally worthless here in this desert,” responds Denny.

As they enter the northern edge of the badlands, Denny spots what look like black colored water veins and ask, “What are those?”

“Lets find out,” answers Michael.

“Oil seeps,” says Denny. “Now I see why there was an oil pump in one of those loot crates we found the other day.”

“That will make getting oil a lot easier then chasing Jug Bugs all day,” responds Michael.

“One thing is for certain,” says Denny. “Resources are very scarce in this area. Just rocks, rocks, and more rocks. No water, trees, cactus, just scorpions, raptors, bugs, scrub brush and oil seeps. Skeletons galore too. No way the others could be surviving in that.”

“Lets check out the Green Obelisk,” says Michael.

It is a huge contrast from the stark badlands where the Green Obelisk is located over a natural bowl with a oasis in the center. There is an abundance of date palms, trees, plants of all kinds, and lots of creatures including some wild Argys from the hill nearby.

“Even though there are plenty of resources here, there is no signs of the others.” answers Denny.

“Lets head back to base before it gets too hot,” answers Michael.

Last night in Ark, I found a drop at the edge of the Dune Desert. I contained an oil pump and a ramshackle Thorny Dragon saddle.

 

Chapter 14 The Great Split

At the evening meeting, Michael reports to the rest of the tribe on the exploration of the day. “We found the Northern force field during our exploration of the Sand Desert. Most interesting is that the creatures of this Ark were observed to be living far beyond that boundary. This seems to indicate that we may be on an alien world instead of in a simulator.”

“The oil pump found in the drop does have a use after all. We have found oil seeps in the badlands to the East. Like the water vein, the oil pump can be placed over one.”

“There was a water vein with a patch of vegetation far in the Dune Desert. We placed a water well there for future use.”

“The Green Obelisk has a large oasis in its center with a small lake. The entire surrounding area is all scrub brush badlands.”

“So far, there has been no signs of the others.”

“We explored the Northern Cave near the Red Obelisk,” answers professor Narcy. “It was predator free until we were way inside near the ruins where the Rubble Elemental lived. The cave is loaded with crystal, metal, obsidian, sulfur, and other rare resources. We plan to make a second trip in the morning with the Parcer and the rest of our tames and get stocked up with the hard to obtain materials.”

“We now have canteens. They will hold water a lot better then those leaky water skins or those heavy jars.”

“We plan to fly West to continue our exploration and look for the others,” answers Michael.

Michael and Denny leave for their western trip early that morning. The others pack their tames in preparation to mine the cave.

As Michael and Denny fly around the Southern Peak, they see an unbelievable sight in the Dune Desert ahead. “That looks like an entire city with a coliseum,” says Denny.

“It looks half buried by the dunes,” answers Michael. “Lets check it out.”

Landing in the coliseum, they both marvel at the huge stone statue sitting on the corner. “A Manitcore,” comments Michael. “If that is the boss creature on this ark, it looks far more dangerous then what we faced on The Center”

“Thankfully, we won't have to face it here,” answers Denny. “As one has to be teleported to a Boss Arena, this place can't be it.”

“Lets continue checking the ruins.”

After resting the Argys, the flight continues West through the ruins of the abandoned city. “Force Field,” says Michael. “Like the wild creatures, the ruins continue far past where we can travel.”

“Lets continue North towards the mountains.” answers Denny.

It isn't long before a huge split in the ground, lined with giant basaltic columns comes into view. Deep below, a lava river becomes visible.

“Wow! Looks like the Ark just split apart here,” says Michael. “This crack is huge and deep.”

“Is that Draco in the distance?” ask Denny.

“No,” says Michael after placing the spotting scope on it. “It is a two legged dragon, a wyvern.”

“I see some more in the split below,” says Denny.

“Lets gain some altitude,” says Michael. “It is pretty hot down there.”

They continue further flying along the split “Whoa, there is a dragon fight with some Argys up ahead,” says Michael. “A blue one just fried an Argy with a lightning bolt.”

“We better get out of here,” warns Denny. “Three have taken interest in us and they don't look friendly.”

“Head for those peaks and fast,” says Michael. “That green one closing in fast.”

“Incoming,” warns Denny as a glowing green pellet go flying close by and impact into an argy nest ahead.

“Fly close by those wild Argys,” instructs Michael. “Then look for some cover.” The wild Argys take off to the North as two of the dragons go after them. The green one continues chasing after Michael and Denny as they dive down into the pass.

“Crossbows and Tranc Arrows, Argys on Passive,” instructs Michael. “Lets see if we can drop it.”

The Green Dragon fires another shot which flies over them as Michael and Denny cut loose with tranc arrows to it's head. The third volley drops it in front of their feet.

“Damn, she's untameable,” comments Michael as he inspects the unconscious green dragon. “She would have made a good combat mount.”

“What is Wyvern Milk?” ask Denny.

“Lets take it back with us and get out of here before she wakes up,” answers Michael. “Her torpor is recovering rapidly. Besides, I have a feeling that we are being watched.”

Flying further up to the summit, they land using the rocks as cover to observe the green dragon below. “Wow, she didn't stay knocked out for long,” comments Denny. “At least, she is flying away from our position. Oh drat, this Wyvern milk spoils in 18 minutes. And, it doesn't matter if I place it in the Argy's inventory or not.”

“Might as well throw it out, It will be all spoiled before we get back to base,” answers Michael.

They make it back to base by afternoon as the rest come back from the cave with the raw resources.

“We need to have faster Argys,” reports Michael to the rest of the tribe. “We ran into flying creatures called Wyverns in the Western Desert. They are as big as a Quetz and very fast.”

“Then, the Survivor's Handbook we found this morning is correct,” answers Professor Narcy. “These fantasy creatures actually do exist.”

“We dropped a green one that we were unable to outrun it,” answers Michael. “It fired glowing green pellets at us which just missed. We found that it cannot be tamed, so we grabbed its milk and fled. The milk soon spoiled so we pitched it.”

“You were lucky that it was a poison wyvern that was chasing you.” answers Professor Narcy. “Their range attack is not accurate.”

“Yes, we know,” answers Michael. “We saw a blue one fry an argy at range with a lightning bolt.”

“And, the red ones breathe fire,” answers Professor Narcy. “Fortunately, they don't fly far from the great split which is their home.”

“While the Survivor's Handbook states that wild Wyverns are not tamable, you can steal their eggs and tame the babies. With preserving salts, you can knock out the adults and steal their milk to give to the babies until they become adults. As adults, they can be leveled up like any other tame.”

“Sounds like something so dangerous as to not be worth the risk,” says Michael. “We need to level up our Argys for speed and stamina before we head back there again.”

“We found the ruins of a city South and West of the Great Split.” reports Denny. “It was complete with a coliseum with a statue of a creature called a Manitcore.”

“We will need to study it more once we can find a way to deal with death worms,” answers Professor Narcy.

“Our trip to the cave was quite profitable. In addition to finding the handbook, we gathered plenty of rare resources from the cave.”

“We still need to explore North along the mountains and check out the Blue Obelisk.” answers Michael. “Then, we will know for sure if the others are here with us or in another Ark.”

The next morning, Michael and Denny complete their survey on the eastern side of the mountains. They fly to the Blue Obelisk where an oasis is nestled in the depression bordered by badlands, the mountains and the Dune Desert. Ruins are scattered about in it. They fly around the North, then West of the mountains until they find the Great Split. Then, they head back to base.

“Nothing at the Blue Obelisk,” Michael reports to the tribe. “There are no other suitable places to set up a camp in the North West. It is all badlands, desert, or wyvern infested.”

“Then, we have to assume that the others are not here with us.” answers Professor Narcy. “We'll continue leveling up to get the technology we need to deal with the new threats. Then, we can plan an expedition to the abandoned city to look for clues what to do next.”

 

My game play of October 3rd found a lightning wyverm flying near the small mountain to the Southwest of my base. Overall, they appear to be rare even along the Great Split. It is a Level 27 male.

On survey flights since, I have found another that landed by the abandoned city. A poison one was found in the Badlands attacking two parcurs.

I flew the Great Split with Electra with the enemy invisible cheat on. The place was so infested with wyverns, I actually collided with two of them.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 15 reunited.

 

Back at North Tropical, we prepare for the trip to Scorched Earth to search for the others. The past several days have been spent in preparing preserved food for us and the tames we will be taking with us. We will be taking the entire wolf pack on the ferry raft and the two argys on the two supply rafts. Spare rafts have been crafted and stored on the supply rafts for bringing back the others and their tames. We have crafted extra canteens that are resistant to leaking and gille armor for everyone to combat the heat of the Dune Desert. Everyone will be armed with crossbows with both tranc and fire arrows to deal with the predators. We will be using the two Argys to scout for sand worms and will work out tactics for dealing with them if forced into a fight with one.

“Did the sand worm use any kind of a range attack when you ran into it?” I ask Mary.

“No,” she answers

“How did it attack?”

“It traveled underground pushing up sand as it approached us, then, it burst from the sand to look directly at us for a couple of seconds. It then leaped back into the ground as it attacked the frightened raptors taking them with it.”

“That couple of seconds could be used to our advantage,” I answer. “If we time it right, we could go after its eyes with the argys as the wolf pack hit it's body from all sizes.”

“That might work,” answers Joe. “Just be sure to jump to one side when it comes crashing back down into the sand.”

“If we travel all night, we should reach Scorched Earth by early morning. We can then travel through the Dune Desert to reach the canyon oasis before it gets too hot to travel.”

“We should be able to see the marker in the morning sunrise,” answers Mary.

The navigation is good as we find the marker right away after sailing all night. The tribe ties up the rafts as Joe and I take a survey flight looking for any danger.

“That's an odd looking loot crate,” says Joe as he spots it in the sand. “There is no beacon marking it.”

“I think it is a deep sea loot crate,” I answer.

“It would make sense in a sea of sand,” answers Joe.

We land as I check it out. “A real odd find,” I tell Joe. “An iron key, two Super Test Meat, a Shock Lance, and a dozen infinite shelf life wyvern milk.”

“What is a wyvern?” ask Joe.

“I don't know,” I answer. “Lets go ask Mary.”

“A wyvern were those fictitious two legged dragons of the Middle Ages,” Mary tells us. “Likely about the size of Q-Bert. They are fast, can spit fire, lightning, ice, or poison, and are to be considered very dangerous.”

“Since their milk was in the loot crate, we must assume wild wyverns are living on this Ark,” I answer. “With a key to some kind of a lock, super test meat, and milk, it may be our destiny to tame a young one.”

“Lets get on our way before it gets too hot to travel,” answers Joe.

Flying on the Argys, Joe and I guide the others away from any danger in the dunes as we head to the Dome Ruins. We find a large pack of raptors circling the dome structure as an electrical storm approaches.

“Take out those raptors with the wolf pack,” I instruct the others as Joe and I go after four other raptors coming in to join the pack. They are cleaned out in short order as the storm hits forcing us into the dome for shelter.

The wolf pack goes on alert as we see a dark gray purple colored creature slightly smaller then a Quetz with a dragon's head cowering in the corner. Three dead raptors litter the floor nearby.

“Stand down,” I order. “It's badly hurt and scared out of its wits.”

Checking the Shock Lance, I find that it has been rendered inoperable by the storm. The young injured wyvern makes eye contact with me. We stare at each other until I am interrupted.

“Should we tranc it?” ask Joe.

I can see the fear in it's eyes, but can sense that it doesn't want to harm me. “No,” I tell the others.“We might accidentally kill it in this weakened condition. I'm going to try for a passive tame.”

Carefully approaching this frightened injured creature, I finally get close enough to give it a Super Test Meat which is carefully taken from my hand. There is a sigh of relief as it slowly eats it and lays down facing me.

I read her stats from my Specimen Implant. “Female Juvenile Lightning Wyvern, Level 82.” Her health is very low but is slowly improving. Her food, very low and dropping. “Mary, Bring me some medical brew and raw meat from those dead raptor,” I ask as I place my hand on her trembling head.

I use the medical brew to continue the healing process. The young wyvern is calming down, no longer shaking in fear, but she won't eat any of the raw meat I give her. On a hunch, I give her some of the wyvern milk. She takes several of them imminently. Her hunger bar improves dramatically as she starts healing a lot faster.

“We have ourselves a late juvenile female Lightning Wyvern,” I tell the others. “Be gentle when you come to examine her. She is still unsure of us.”

As the rest of the tribe approaches, Mary asks. “How do you think she ended up here?”

“My guess is she somehow got separated from her mother, then ended up here where she was attacked by the raptors. It is a good thing we arrived when we did or she would be dead by now.”

“This had to have been arranged by The Keepers,” answers Joe. “Finding the drop with the specific items we needed and finding her in need of our assistance, do you think that we will eventually need her for some unknown purpose?”

“Strange things happening on Ark appear to be the norm.” I answer “When the storm clears, the rest of you continue on to the oasis before it gets too hot. I want to stay with her until she heals up and reaches maturity. That shouldn't take much longer. My implant says she should be there soon.”

The storm soon clears as the others continue on with Mary on my Argy following Joe. I stay with the young wyvern stroking her head, talking words of encouragement to her, as she lays beside me. She is well on the mend when she surprises me by asking for the last of the milk. Fully healed, she hits adulthood. She ask me for the raw meat and eats several pieces of it. She then ask me to climb up on her back so she can take me back to the others. Not needing a saddle, I get on her shoulder and we take flight.

What a pleasure she is to ride. Fast, nimble, with good stats for a young adult. Most amazing is that I am not physically controlling her in the normal sense like using the reins of a bridle on an Argy. She is learning my balance and cues as I learn how to read hers. Or, simply, I just tell her what I want her to do. It is similar to how Jake was communicating with the flying creatures on Avatar, but without the biological connection between them. We just keep talking to each other. I am so fascinated to be talking to this creature, she is so thankful we decided to help.

Catching up to the others, I find they are doing battle with a Sand Worm. It is an Alpha that is giving them difficulty with our agreed upon tactics. It has proven far tougher then they had expected. Assessing the situation, this young wyvern tells me how she can help.

“Stand Clear,” I yell down as I come charging in on the wyvern. She cuts loose with a blazing electrical discharge blasting the sand worm square in the head. With acrid smoke coming out of the hole in its head, it drops to the ground dead.

“That was awesome!” shouts Joe as we land next to the dead sand worm. “I now see why wyverns were so feared in the Middle Ages.”

“50 Death Worms spikes,” Tod answers. “They must serve some importance. Plenty of raw meat for the Argys, wolf pack, and Electra.”

“Electra, a most fitting name,” answers Sarah. “She sure saved the day.”

“I'm really glad that we saved her,” I answer “She is so fascinating to be with. She's been talking to me ever since we left the dome. I never knew wyverns could be so intelligent. She just told me we can call her Electra.”

“Then, Electra it is,” as everyone comes up to give her a pat on the head.

We continue on finally reaching the shelter of the canyon and the pond marking the edge of the Dune Desert. I can see the base ahead and fly towards it, but, everyone is taking up arms as I start coming in to land. “We just scared them out of their wits. Lets get out of here,” I tell Electra as two argys, carrying armed individuals, come chasing after us.

Racing back to the others, I tell Joe and Mary, “You better fly ahead and tell them Electra is no threat. She just scared the wits out of everyone there.”

Joe and Mary intercept the two argys coming our way carrying two other individuals armed with rifles. After a short meeting, they fly over to the wolf pack where the two others are dropped off to ride the wolves back.

“You scared the wits out of us when you flew over our base,” says Michael as he and Denny come flying alongside me. “We have seen what the wyverns are capable of. We tranced a poison one the other day but couldn't tame it. You are going have to tell us how you managed to tame this one.”

“I don't believe Electra is a tame.” I tell Michael. “Her readings from my specimen implant are registering her as wild. She's very intelligent. She has been talking to me non stop ever since we left the Dome Ruins where we found her in need of our help. I'll fill you in when we land.”

Landing in the Argy pen, we are all introduced to each other as I introduce everyone to Electra. “Hard to believe the legends of wyverns appearing in the Middle Ages was true.” says Professor Narcy.

“Electra tells me that there is no known history of wyverns living on Earth.” I answer. “She tells me that survivors from Earth long ago have battled with them in the past on Ark.”

“Then, that would explain those stories from the Middle Ages,” answers Professor Narcy.

I tell them the story of how we found Electra, the strange loot crate, the raptor fight, nursing her back to health, and killing the Alpha Death Worm.

Michael tells me about their encounter with the wild wyverns of the Great Split, their extremely aggressive behavior, and how they tranc a poison one that was chasing them, but found they couldn't tame it.

“Electra now tells me she was chased to the dome and hid there when her parents were killed by their leader, the Red Alpha.” I answer. “She says the Red Alpha is the reason for their aggressive behavior.”

“That may explain the unusual find in your deep sea loot crate,” answers Michael. “We found one the other day but it contained a worthless Ramshackle Pleoasaur saddle.”

“The strange drop, finding Electra hiding in the dome ruins, her becoming my loyal mount, It is possible we may have to deal with that Red Alpha?” I ask. “Michael, take the shock lance. If we are forced into a fight with it, you may have to use this while the rest of us keep it busy.”

The others soon arrive where they are awed by the unusual tames in Professor Narcy's base camp. “The Jerboas, Morellotops, Jug Bugs, Moth, and Thorny Dragons are unique to this Ark.” he tells us. “Like the wyverns, none of these creatures ever existed on Earth. I believe that we are not in a simulator but on an alien planet where these creatures exist for real.”

“That would explain us being able to use the raft to sail beyond what should have been the boundaries of The Center to this desert land.” I answer.

“We do have a force field of sorts in effect here,” answers Michael, “Given that we have observed ruins and creatures far beyond it indicates that we must be on another world in a controlled environment.”

“What are these Death Worm Spikes useful for?” Joe ask Professor Narcy.

“According to our Survivor's Handbook, they are used for passive taming the giant mantas. How did you obtain so many at once?”

“They were on an Alpha sand worm that attacked us that Electra took out with her lightning attack.” Joe answers. “Should we try to tame some Mantas? I saw two by the sandy patch South of your camp.”

“We can craft saddles for them,” answers Julia.

“Let me check with Electra to see if I can leave her here for a while,” I answer. After a moment with her, I return to the others.

“She says I can go with you. She would like to have Tod, Mary, and Sarah keep her company for a while. She need the assurance of our friendship after losing her parents.”

Armed with the spikes, two saddles, bug repellent, and pikes, Joe and I head South over the plateau to the desert where we find a pair of the giant Mantas. We soon have a pair passive tamed in no time.

“Hey, these guys are pretty smart,” I tell Joe “We can equip them with weapons and tools.”

“Looks like Star Ship Trooper is not such a fantasy after all,” responds Joe as we test out their ability to use our tools. “Lets go show the others.”

We return to camp before the heat gets too bad showing everyone the capabilities of our new tames. “Very useful, all around tame,” says Joe.

I head up to the Argy pen to check on Electra. “She's awesome!” Sarah reports to me. “She had quite a conversation with us. It was hard to believe that we were talking to a creature about everything and anything.”

“She wanted to know what was in my Medical Brew,” answers Mary. “She told me it was most soothing.”

“She was interested in my relationship with Sarah,” answers Tod. “I had to explain to her that we were just good friends on this expedition.”

“I'm so glad that she is starting to fit in with the rest of us.” I answer. “I been getting concerned that she would become too attached to me after the traumatic event of what happened to her this morning.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 16 The Red Alpha

 

Trading stories of our adventures, we start preparing our caravan for exploring the abandoned city to look for clues of this ark and its origin. Everyone has been so fascinated with Electra and her ability to communicate with them as an intelligent being. Everyone has taken turns getting to know her. She is becoming more relaxed among us, no longer having that fierce look. I have even observed her taking some of the undergrad students for a ride to show them Scorched Earth from the air. I'm so glad that I had that gut feeling to attempt a tame instead of taking advantage of her weakened condition to kill her. She has proven to be so valuable to our visit on this Ark. Yet, I believe that she's been studying us as much as we have been studying her, that she was placed with us for some unknown purpose.

We will be packing tents for our temporary shelter in case we are surprised by sandstorms or megaheat. An adobe shelter has been packed on the Parcur. The Morellotops will be coming along as a water source. All the wolves will be in use to clear out raptors and other dangers. The Argys will be flying recon as well as I on Electra.

But, I am soon sensing a problem as we prepare for the expedition.

Electra tells me she is very nervous about going on this mission. She tells me the city is close to the southern edge of The Great Split where the wild wyverns and their leader, the Red Alpha lives. She fears for our safety and her's. I ask her if we should abandon the mission and leave Scorched Earth. She tells me no, the expedition is too important to abandoned it.

I tell the others about her concern. Michael tells me that he is also concerned about the danger we may face given his encounter with the wild wyverns the other day and how close the ruins are to The Great Split where they live. I have given Michael the shock lance. We plan an attack strategy should we be forced into a showdown with the Red Alpha.

Michael and I spend the rest of the day leveling up Electra and the Argys for maneuvering, speed, and endurance. She is so happy to be flying over the Badlands with us as it has taken her mind off the expedition. I soon feel confident that we should be able to deal with any threat and have the ability to outrun it if things go wrong.

Flying back to the base, we spot a white wyvern with a chain dangling from its leg flying close to the base. “It's Red Alpha!” Says Electra in a panic. “Lets get out of here, please! I've got to hide, somewhere, anywhere!”

“Electra! Get it together!” I yell at her. “Our friends need you more then ever. We need to distract her so Michael and his friends can take her down.”

“Something is not right,” Michael tells us as he flies close by. “Red Alpha is flying alone. She has not made any attempt to attack the base. She's flying slow, back and forth, like she can't decide what she wants to do. Through my spotting scope, I see blood on her leg by the chain shackle. She looks like she is in a lot of pain. She must be badly hurt.”

“I'm sorry I had to yell at you,” as I apologize to a stunned Electra. “Do you think that the other wyverns have rebelled against her?”

“I don't know,” Electra answers.

“How did she get that chain on her leg?” I ask.

“She never told us,” Electra answers.

“Lets go find out,” I answer.

We fly alongside Red Alpha who appears to be just as frightened of us as Electra is of her. She looks at Electra and I.

“Help me, please,” she says shaking in fear and crying in pain.

“Land in the Argy pen,” I instruct her. “We will do what we can.”

Red Alpha heads for the pen, but is is obvious that she is coming in with very little control. “She's having trouble landing,” I warn Michael. “Ouch, the chain got caught on the wall. She just fell in. She's not getting back up”

Although still frightened by her presence, Electra lands in the Argy pen next to the crippled Alpha. Michael has already landed next to Red Alpha who is now lying on her side screaming in agony.

As the rest of the tribe rushes into the Argy pen, a crippled Red Alpha looks at Electra and I for a moment, then looks at Michael making eye contact with him. They stare at each other for a moment. Taking out the Shock Lance, he places the tip on the base of her neck and fires it. Red Alpha is knocked out cold.

Caroline runs over to Michael and sees that look in his face. “What's wrong?” she asks.

“The Red Alpha,” answers Michael in shock. “She had that look in her eyes, a look of being in sheer agony, a look that said 'please put me out of my misery'. Then, she asked me to do so just before I knocked her out.”

“I saw that same look in my best friend Jerry in Vietnam. We were on patrol in some very thick jungle. A thorny vine pulled the pin out of his grenade. It ripped a hole in his side when it went off. He was screaming in agony just like Red Alpha. The medics shot him up with morphine in an effort to kill the pain. It didn't work. He died an hour later as the medivac was flying him out.”

“Can we save her?”

“Is she worth saving?” ask Caroline.

Electra then shocks all of us with her answer. “Before she looked at Michael, she looked at me begging for forgiveness.”

“I saw that too,” I answer.

“Then, lets get to work.” answers Caroline. “Lets get that thing off her leg. Mary, go get some narcs and medical brew. Someone bring up some raw meat and a large bucket of water for her.”

“As soon as you can, give her this other piece of super test meat.” I tell Michael. “ It should help relieve the pain.”

“Damn, the shackle has a lock on it,” says Denny.

“Is this the key?” I ask as I hand the iron key from the drop to Denny”

Working on the lock, Michael and Denny finally get the shackle unlatched. “Joe, Halsey, help us pull this thing off her leg.” It takes a solid tug by the four of us until the shackle finally comes loose falling to the ground with a loud metallic clunk.

“Oh how awful,” says Caroline, “That looks like a bone infection. No wonder she is in such severe pain.”

“I think I'm going to be sick.” responds Michael as he has to look away from that terribly infected wound.

“Get me some stimm berries, narcoberries, mejoberries, rare flowers, water, and clean cloth,” ask Pauline. Her husband, Chief Terry, brings up the requested items from storage down below.

Caroline and Pauline go to work cleaning up the infection in the wound. Michael surprisingly is by the semi conscious Red Alpha's stroking her on the forehead. “Do you think Michael is suffering a flashback?” Caroline ask me.

“I don't know,” I answer. “I was doing the same thing to Electra when she needed our help.”

“We have a problem,” announces Michael. “Like the poison wyvern, I can't force feed her the Super Test Meat, any food, or narcs. She is literally starving to death. Careful everyone. She's starting to come to.”

Red Alpha starts to slowly regain conscious. She is still in a lot of pain. She sees the unlocked shackle and chain lying on the ground, then looks over at her leg to see Caroline and Pauline cleaning up the wound. She then looks at me and Electra. Then, she looks at Michael and starts crying.

“I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I never knew.” she says in a weak voice while crying.

“Let it all out Pretty Girl,” Michael responds “Let your emotional state start healing along with your leg.”

Michael hands her the Super Test Meat. “Eat this,” he tells her. “This will take away the pain. Eat something. You are literally starving to death.”

She is very reluctant to eat, but with Michael's encouragement, starts to nibble on the Super Test Meat, then eats it. With a sigh of relief, she gets a drink from the bucket of water, takes Mary's medical brew, eats several pieces of raw meat, then ask Michael to keep stroking her forehead.

“How are you feeling?” ask Michael.

“Much better,” she answers in a weak and tired voice.”I'm so relieved that awful thing is off my leg. I so regret that I didn't listen to Electra suggesting that I should have asked you humans for help, that you are not as bad as I believed.”

“Electra, I'm so sorry that I hurt you. I never knew.”

“Get some rest, Pretty Girl. I will stay here with you.”

“Thank you,” answers Red Alpha. “I never knew humans could show such compassion.”

“I understand why you felt otherwise. I'm glad that Halsey had the key he found in a supply drop for that evil shackle. Without it, we might still be working to get that thing off you. You don't have to tell me how it got there until you are ready. Go get some sleep. Let your leg heal up. I'll be here for you.” She is out cold before Michael has finished talking to her.

Caroline and Pauline finish cleaning up the wound on Red Alpha's leg. They have applied a poultice Pauline has made from the berries and herbs to pull out the infection. Then, they bandage up the wound.

We stay with her all night. Even Electra is concerned about Red Alpha's condition. She no longer appears to be afraid of her as she stays by her side.

It is early morning when Joe alerts us to a wyvern flying in the distance. I get on Electra and fly out towards it.

As we approach the golden red fire wyvern, there is a sudden surge of excitement in Electra. “Do you know that wyvern?” I ask her.

“It's Paragon,” she answers excitingly. “I so missed her.”

“Electra, It is you,” answers an excited Paragon as we get closer. “I was so afraid Red Alpha had killed you when you and your parents didn't return.”

“She almost did,” answers Electra. “If it wasn't for Halsey, I would probably be dead by now.”

I find myself hanging on for dear life as the two excited wyverns accidentally collide into each other. “Girls!” I say in alarm. “Find a place to land before we have another injury to contend with.”

“Are you all right?” ask Electra as she lands on a nearby plateau.

“I'm fine,” I answer. “It's just a long ways to fall without a parachute. I understand the excitement of missing your friend after what you have gone through. I don't want to see anyone of you get hurt.”

“I'll try to be more careful.” answers Electra.

“Where did you find this human?” ask Paragon.

“Actually, he found me.” answers Electra. “I was hiding in the dome ruins after Red Alpha had attacked me. Raptors were gathering outside waiting for me to die. Halsey and his friends found me and came to my aid. He stayed with me until I was fully recovered. We have been so fascinated with each other since.”

“That's wonderful,” answers Paragon. “You were always so hopeful that humans were not as evil as Red Alpha kept telling us.”

“You won't believe what happened last night,” I tell Paragon. “Red Alpha paid us an unexpected visit asking for our help. She is at our base recovering from her injuries caused by that chain shackle. She was in so much pain that she was begging us to put her out of her misery.”

“I'm not surprised,” answers Paragon. “It had been bothering her a lot ever since your tribe showed up on this Ark. After she came back from chasing Electra, she caught the chain between some boulders while landing. She was screaming from the pain it caused. She got it loose but kept trying to hide from us how much pain she was in. She hadn't slept or eaten in days. Then, yesterday afternoon, she just disappeared.”

“Come with us back to our base,” I answer. “The spikes inside that shackle had caused a bone infection. I'm told that can be extremely painful if not treated. She could use the comfort of a familiar friend while she is recovering. She was still asleep when I left the Argy pen. Michael has been with her all night. She has grown quite attached to him already.”

We make a quick hunting trip dispatching the raptors near the base and taking one of their kills. Then we return landing in a now crowded Argy pen.

“Welcome back Pretty Girl,” says Michael as she wakes up.

“Please, don't let me wake up,” answers Red Alpha. “I was dreaming that humans removed the shackle from my leg, then cleaned up and bandaged the wound. Electra was by my side with a human standing close to her. And, that awful pain, its now gone.”

“You're not dreaming Pretty Girl,” answers Michael. “You were just so tired after having such a bad day.”

“I haven't slept like that in ages,” Red Alpha tells Michael. “I feel so much better.”

“You have a friend here to see you,” I tell her.

“Paragon!” Red Alpha answers in surprise. “I'm so glad that you came.”

“I was so worried after you got caught in the rocks, then disappeared.” answers Paragon.

“Does anyone have anything for me to eat,” ask Red Alpha. 'I'm starving.”

“We anticipated that,” I answer. “Michael, there is raw meat on Electra and Paragon you can use.”

“Thank you,” answers Red Alpha as she starts chowing down on the food. “I never knew fresh raptor could be so tasty.”

“A miracle,” says Caroline as she removes the dressing on the leg to check it. “The swelling is gone and your leg is nearly fully healed.”

“Am I now your tame?” Red Alpha ask Michael.

“No,” answers Michael. “My implants says that you are still wild. You are free to go.”

Red Alpha stands up, then launches herself into the air. “Well, I guess that's the last we see of her.” says Michael.

“Maybe not,” I answer. “She has circled back. She's coming in to land.”

“Michael,” shes says as she lands and kneels by his side. “Come fly on me.”

Paragon is standing there in shock. “I don't believe it. She swore that she would never let any human fly on her when she saw them on the Argys.”

Michael gets on Red Alpha and sits on her shoulders in the natural saddle. “You have a level up?” he says in surprise. “How is that possible when you are not a tame?”

“Better level her up on something.” I tell Michael. “I've been getting them with Electra as well.”

“OK, then, Pretty Girl, lets go for your stamina.”

“Oh! That feels so wonderful,” she responds with a sequel of delight as we all stand there in shock by her reaction.

“The Keepers must have added something new,” I answer. “I've never seen a reaction like that before on a level up, not even on Electra. I see Paragon has a level up. I didn't know that was possible on a wild creature. Caroline, would you like to try a level up on her?”

“Is that OK with you Paragon?” Ask Caroline.

“Go for it,” Paragon answers.

“WOW! That was incredible. And, you gave me stamina as well. Thank you so much for that experience.”

“I've noticed that reaction on all of our tames when I checked on them this morning,” answers Mary. “Something was added to the leveling ability to our specimen implants that they find quite pleasurable when we give them a level up.”

“Whatever it was, it felt so wonderful.” says Red Alpha. “Michael, where shall we go?”

“You're in charge Pretty Girl,” answers Michael. “Take me for a ride.”

“We better go follow them,” answers Caroline as they take off. “She's still not at one hundred percent. She is emotionally quite fragile at present.”

“Caroline, I'll take you along.” responds Paragon.

Flying, we catch up with a most happy Red Alpha. “I have never felt so free before. Thank you Michael. Thank all of you for what you have done.”

“Our convoy is getting ready to start on its way to the city ruins. Would you like to fly escort with us?” I ask as we land back in the pen.

“Absolutely,” the three wyverns answer. “We'd love to fly with you.”

I am back on Electra who is most happy to have Paragon by her side and so relieved that Red Alpha is no longer an enemy. Paragon is delighted to have Caroline ride on her as they both strike up a conversation about her and Michael. And the Red Alpha, she is thoroughly enjoying Michael's company. She is so happy to be flying pain free for the first time in ages.

As the pace is slow compared to flying, the wyverns fly in large lazy circles around the convoy. It's hard to believe they can soar so gracefully.

Most of the dangerous creatures flee in advance of the caravan and the wyverns overhead. The one exception, a sand worm, is quickly dispatched by Paragon, Electra, and Red Alpha. It provides raw meat for the wolf pack, argys, and the three wyverns.

Rounding the southern peaks, we spot a lightning wyvern in the distance flying over the desert. “Everyone is out looking for you,” Paragon tells Red Alpha. “Let's go see who it is.”

As we get closer, Paragon recognize the lightning wyvern. “It's Tesla, my mate” she tells us.

“I can't believe what I am seeing,” says Tesla as he flies in and circles us. “Electra, I was so sure that you had been killed. You look so fantastic. I'm so glad that my Paragon has her best friend back.”

“Red Alpha? Is that really you? I've never seen you look so happy. How did you get rid of that chain shackle? You have a human riding on you? Electra and my Paragon as well? How is that possible?”

“I was so wrong about these humans,” answers Red Alpha. “Michael and his friends are not like the others of years ago. I was so desperate to get rid of that awful shackle that I took Electra's advice, to seek their help, or let them put me out of my misery.”

“When I fell into their camp screaming in pain, Michael and his friends came to my aid. They unlocked and removed that cursed shackle. Halsey had the key and special meat that dulled that awful pain. Caroline and Pauline cleaned and bandaged the wound it had caused. They fed and stayed with me all night. When I woke up this morning, I felt like a teenager.”

“Michael said that I was free to go, that I was not his tame. I chose to stay with him. He, and his friends, have been so wonderful to be with.”

“Caroline has been great to talk to,” answers Paragon. “Their tribe is down below with their tames. We are escorting them to the city ruins so they can do a study of what happened there. Go tell the others that Red Alpha is with us, that she no longer has the shackle on her that had caused her such torment for so long, that she is so glad that she asked these humans for help.”

Tesla flies off to the North as we continue back to the caravan. “There are two more wyverns to the West,” I announce as we turn to intercept them.

“That's Zippo and Torch,” announces Red Alpha. “I never knew that everyone was going to be so concerned about me disappearing on them.”

“Electra you look so marvelous,” announces Zippo. “Is that Red Alpha you are flying with? I've never seen her so happy. Last time I saw you she was so mad she wanted to kill you.”

“There's a humans riding you!” says a shocked Torch. “Even on Red Alpha who swore that she would never let one ride on her?”

“I was so wrong about them,” answers Red Alpha. “They came to my aid when I was in such need. Come fly escort with us. Their caravan is heading to the ruin city to study what happened to it.”

We reach the outskirts of the city ruins by noon. “That arena gives me the creeps,” Red Alpha tells Michael. “It has such bad memories.”

“I understand,” answers Michael. “We'll camp on this nearby ridge.”

As the tribe sets up a base of operations among the edge of the city, Denny spots a green wyvern flying in from the West. “Isn't that the one we tried to tame a couple of days ago?” Denny asks Michael.

“Sleeper will be OK,” answers Paragon. “She understands why you had to knock her out the other day.”

Sleeper comes in and lands by the five wyverns. She is so surprised to see Electra again and Red Alpha without a chain on her leg. She walks over to talk to Michael and Denny.

“We're sorry that we had to knock you out with tranc arrows the other day,” they both say. “We didn't have tranc darts at the time.”

“That's OK,” answers Sleeper. “I understand your having to defend yourself when I was ordered to attack you. I'm just glad that you didn't try to kill me when I was knocked out.”

“That was never our intention,” answers Michael. “We were going to try to tame you but found out that was impossible. So, we left and kept an eye out for danger until you were able to wake up and leave.”

“I'm so glad to see Red Alpha so happy.” answers Sleeper. “She had been suffering so the past several days.”

As we finish setting up camp and securing it from any threats, the other wyverns continue flying in until there is a total of 18 of them in our camp. After a lot of excited conversation, then talking to Red Alpha, Michael gets us together for an announcement. “Don't expect to get anything else done today. They all want to take us flying.”

Michael, Caroline, and I are on our three we rode out on. Sleeper asks for Denny. The rest are picked up by the remaining wyverns, even the doubting Dr Sanders who is picked by Tesla.

It is a most remarkable afternoon of flying over the entire area of Scorched Earth. We get the grand tour of The Great Split up close. It is quite hot along the Lava River but our Gille and Desert Armor protects us well. By evening, we return to camp.

I tell Electra she should go spend the rest of the evening and night with her friends. Michael tells Red Alpha to do the same. They are both reluctant to leave us but go ahead after promising to return in the morning.

“What a remarkable day,” says Michael. “Who would ever believe that we would end up with wyverns as our good friends, especially an Alpha.”

“They all seem to be enjoying us as much as we were enjoying them,” answers Sarah.

“Zippo and Torch were most fascinating,” answers Chief Terry and Pauline. “They really enjoyed having us ride on them. They were as surprised by the experience as we were.”

“Tesla was remarkable.” answers Dr Sanders. “I literally though that I was having a discussion with one of my graduate students. I was quite astonished at his knowledge of our mid evil history.”

“I still don't understand,” says Professor Narcy. “According to The Survivor's Handbook, wild wyverns cannot be tamed. Night Shadow and Nightmare looked so fierce. Yet they were so gentle enjoying every minute with us as Helen and I were enjoying talking to them. They allowed us to do a complete examination and study of the poison wyvern. They were thoroughly enjoying all of the attention.”

“I'm as puzzled as you are,” I answer. “According to our implants, Electra was never a tame. Neither was the Red Alpha. The other 16 wyverns were most certainly wild. We did absolutely nothing that could have tamed them, yet we were able to level them up as if they were our tames.”

“The Survivor's Handbook says Super Test Meat won't tame creatures that cannot be tamed. That was proven when we gave it to Electra and Red Alpha. What it did was to relieve the pain they were in and start the healing process of their injuries. They all made the choice of their own free will to be our good friends.”

That night, I have this really weird dream that I am on Ark as a gray male wyerm spending a most wonderful night with Electra. Strange, I think when I wake up. That experience felt so real.

In the morning, we are treated to quite a sight. The wyverns have cleared out every threat in the area. Red Alpha, Electra, Paragon, and Sleeper, drop us off raw meat for our carnivorous tames. They have even brought us berries for our herbivores, campfire wood, and several metal drums of water.

“How did you know?” I ask Electra who is so glad to see me again.

“In the evening, we were called to the Red Obelisk for a visit by The Keepers. They were so pleased with how things worked out between your tribe and us. They provided us with the metal containers so we could bring you water from the oasis.”

“Then, that confirms the special contents from that strange drop before I found you,” I answer. “The Keepers gave us the tools needed to restore the balance between us on this Ark and your wyvern friends. It was your destiny to be the key to that success.”

“Why the sad face?” I ask her.

“The Keepers asked me to tell you that in seven Ark days, your tribe will be returning to your world possibly leaving us forever.”

“Don't be sad,” I tell Electra. “We knew that day would be coming once their study was over. Enjoy life on this Ark with your friends. Help raise their youngsters. We will certainly not forget you and your friends who gave us a most thrilling adventure. There is always that chance that we will be back again.”

 

Author note;

The update of November 24th added emotional responses to tames when level up are applied. They range from dancing in joy to various vocal responses. Most interesting is the wyvern squeal of delight followed by flapping of the wings.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 17. The Nomads.

 

With being resupplied by the wyverns and all threats to us and our tames removed from the surrounding area, we have been freed to conduct a complete survey of this abandoned city. Red Alpha and Electra want to take Michael and I to fly with them to explore a part of Ark that none of them have ever been to. Dr Sanders, Professor Narcy, and Mary tell us to go and have a good time. Most interesting of all, Red Alpha has asked me to fly on her. She has a ton of questions she wants to ask me about my relationship with Electra. Electra has asked Michael to fly on her. She has a bunch of questions to ask him about Red Alpha. Why do I have this feeling those two had planned this out ahead of time?

We take off heading Northwest towards a mountain range across from the Dune Desert. We find that the force field is no longer in effect. That confirms the fact that we are on an alien planet and no longer in a simulator.

“Is Electra your tame?” ask Red Alpha.

“No,” I answer. “Like you with Michael, I found her in need of my help. She was hiding in the dome ruins, badly hurt, and so afraid of what was going to happen to her next.”

“The pain from the shackle was driving me insane the day Electra suggested that humans didn't appear to be so evil and I should ask for their help. I got so angry after some humans knocked Sleeper from the sky that I wanted to kill her.”

“After talking with her last evening, I'm so glad that I wasn't successful. She really likes you.”

“I know,” I answer. “We have become so close since the day I first saw her in need. I really like her. She's been so fascinating to be with.”

“I'm so happy for the both of you.” answers Red Alpha.

“When I fell into your Argy Pen, the pain was so bad that I was begging Michael to kill me. I'm so glad that he didn't. Do you know why he was staring at me like that when he got off his Argy and we made eye contact?”

“He saw that look of agony in your eye and had a flashback from the Vietnam War.” I answer. “Fifty years ago, he lost one of his best friends to a terrible combat accident. Like you, the guy was in so much pain that he was begging to be killed. His team did everything they could to save him and relieve the pain, but he still died in total agony an hour later en route to a field hospital. In spite of how scared we were of you, Michael became determined that we had to save you. His wife supported his decision. The rest of us joined in with total disregard to our own safety.”

“Thank you.” answers Red Alpha. “In spite of how frightened I was of you and your tribe, I'm so glad that I decided to take a chance that humans could help me. I wish that I had done so much sooner.”

“I'm still wondering if The Keepers had planned this all along,” I answer. “Without the wyvern milk, the iron key, the shock lance, and super test meat I found in that strange loot crate, I would have never been able to help Electra recover from her ordeal. Without her, the outcome could have been a disaster for us all. Without the key and the shock lance to knock you out, I don't know how we could have removed that shackle from your leg.”

“There must be something else they have planned for us,” answers Red Alpha. “They asked us to take you two to the mountains ahead. They wouldn't tell us why. They said that we would find out when we arrived.”

“Looks like we will soon find out Pretty Girl,” I answer. “I see a settlement up ahead. My spotting scope shows tamed Morellotops, two tamed thorny dragons, and two individuals.”

“Their camp appears to be more primitive then ours,” answers Michael. “Just some tents and storage boxes next to a well.”

“Steady Pretty Girl,” I tell her as I sense her uneasiness over the presence of the strangers. “We need to know what they are doing here.”

Sensing her building anger as we land, I grab my crossbow as I warn Michael that Red Alpha is having a flashback. He rushes over to calm her down. Electra is right close behind me with a fierce look. The elderly stranger and his wife drop their weapons as they stare at us frozen in fear.

“Tell us why this alpha wyvern is so angry with you that she wants to incinerate this place?” I ask sternly.

“It was forty years ago,” Nomad answers nervously. “Emperor Nero of Sin City wanted an Alpha Wyvern to use in the Arena for selecting a brave warrior to marry his daughter. He hired my brother to go capture one.”

“When my brother ask me to help, I refused to do so telling him that he was inviting a disaster if he ever captured one.”

“As he knew where there was one living in the mountains by the Dune Sea, he staked a parasaur there as bait. It contained a tranquilizer hidden under its hide. A Red Alpha came in for an easy meal and fell unconscious shortly afterwards.”

“I watched from a distance as his team loaded her into a wagon and took her into the Arena.”

“When the Beast Master placed the shackle on her leg in the Arena, she woke up screaming in anger and killed him. She struggles to get loose, breaking the chain that secured her to the gate of the pit.”

“Then, all hell broke loose.”

“She climbed into the grandstand facing the viewing booth as the spectators below fled in panic. Nero's guards attacked her with crossbows and lances. Using a fire attack, she incinerated them, Nero, and the other elites that were in the viewing booth, then flew off. During the confusion, I was able to take the key chain off the dead Beast Master and escape.”

“A violent earthquake shook the land. The sky turned black as the ground split open separating the Western Peaks from the Sand Sea. Lava bombs rained from the sky. My brother and I managed to escape the destruction that quickly followed. A day later, I went to my brother's camp to find that it had been burned to the ground. There were wyvern tracks with signs that a heavy chain was dragging on the ground. I can only conclude that the Red Alpha had got her revenge on him.”

“I wanted so badly to undo that wrong, to somehow capture the Red Alpha so I could remove that shackle. But as fate has it, I never saw her again.”

“Why is your alpha wyvern crying?”

“As fate would have it, Pretty Girl is that very Red Alpha you brother captured forty years ago. Until the day before yesterday, that shackle was still on her leg. She still suffers from the emotional scars of living in such pain.”

“All these years of suffering,” answers Red Alpha in tears.” Hiding from you in fear while you were searching for me, and all I would have had to do to rid myself of that torment was to let you find me to remove the shackle. I've been so wrong assuming that all humans were evil.”

“Come to us Nomad,” Michael says. “Bring your wife with you. Rub her on the forehead. She really likes that.”

“I'm speechless,” comments Nomad after spending several minutes with her. “I never knew these wyverns were so intelligent. I have seen those that were raised from stolen eggs. They were no more intelligent then our tames.”

“Some of us tried to tame the wild adults and juveniles.” answers Nomad's wife Ruth. “We found that they could not be tamed. How did you manage to tame these two, especially the Red Alpha?”

“We didn't,” answers Michael. “They are still wild. They made the choice on their own free will to be our good friends.”

We are interrupted when Electra reports that two other wyverns are flying in towards us. One has a chain shackle on its leg while another wears a collar. “Who are they Pretty Girl?” Michael ask.

“I do not know,” she answers “I'll go find out.” She flies out with Electra to meet them. They land some distance out for several minutes, then they all fly back to land near Nomad's camp.

“The one wearing the collar belonged to Emperor Nero,” answers Nomad. “His name is Tarmac. He is suppose to be Nero's tame. I do not know the one with the chain shackle. She must have escaped from the arena some time before Pretty Girl was captured.”

“Be gentle with Tammy,” answers Red Alpha as she walks up to us. “She's very frightened of humans.”

“I can understand why,” I answer. “She must have been badly treated by them before she got loose.”

“Nomad, do you still have the set of keys you took off the dead beast master?” I ask.

“Yes,” Nomad answers. “I believe it is a master set.”

“Lets go see if we can remove that shackle from her leg.” I answer.

“I'm so frightened by them,” says Tammy as we approach her.

“Tammy,” Red Alpha says sternly to her. “Be brave. Let these humans remove that shackle from your leg. They are friends of mine.”

Approaching her slowly as Tammy watches us shaking with fear, Nomad looks at the shackle on her leg with a sigh of relief. “Thank the Ark Gods, this one is just a restraint and not that spiked one that caused our Pretty Girl so much grief. This should be the key to unlock it.”

“Let her watch us remove it,” I tell Nomad. “She's so frightened of us.”

Nomad inserts the key into the lock which unlocks easily. We both grab each side of the shackle to open it and place it on the ground next to her foot.

“Thank you,” Tammy says with a sigh of relief. “That thing has been most irritating with that chain catching into the rocks and trees.”

“Let us rub your forehead,” I tell Tammy. “You will find it most comforting.”

“Go ahead and let them,” instructs Red Alpha. “It really feels good,”

“You're right, that is most relaxing,” answers Tammy as she starts calming down, then lays down in front of us.

“How did you know we were here,” I ask Tammy as we sit beside her.

“We saw an Alpha and a Lightning Wyvern fly over to the camp,” She answers. “We thought that we were the only wyverns left after the great quake, so, we decided to fly here to investigate. When we seen you humans by them, I was afraid. But, then I saw that they were not restrained at all when they flew out to see us. Pretty Girl convinced me that you wouldn't harm us and that you could remove the chain shackle from my leg.”

“Is Tarmac still Nero's tame or is he now wild?” ask Nomad.

“I have always been wild,” Tarmac answers. “I was able to convince the beast master that I was someone's tame that got lost. I did so in order to observe him and the humans that had been capturing us, so we could devise a means of defense against their tactics. I played the tame game as if I was one of those dumb egg tames until the day Tammy was captured. The night before the Great Quake, I decided that it was time to leave. I was able to snap the link on my collar and help Tammy get loose.”

“I'm sorry that we didn't talk to you sooner,” answers Nomad. “I assumed that you were one of those egg tames of Nero's. Can we have a look at that collar?”

“Yes,” answers Tarmac as he lower his head to our level.

“Excellent, just a simple lock on this one. Let me search through the Beast Master's key chain.” A key is found that unlocks it as we take the collar off of his neck.

“Thank you for removing that thing” Answers Tarmac. “Are we are now your tames?

“No,” I answer. “Unlike Electra and Pretty Girl, you and Tammy do not register on my Specimen Implant. That makes you two truly wild.”

“What brings you out this way in the Dune Desert?” Nomad ask me.

“We are over by the abandoned City studying what happened there.” I answer. “Pretty Girl and Electra were asked to bring us over here. Would you like to help us in that study?

“Certainly, answers Nomad and Ruth.”

“How about you two?” as I look at Tarmac and Tammy.

“What if we are captured again?” ask Tammy in fear.

“It's safe.” I answer. “The city has been dead for years. Pretty Girl killed the Beast Master, Nero and his guards when she escaped. The Great Quake destroyed the rest of the place. There is nothing left to harm you any more.”

“I don't believe it,” Michael tells me. “Pretty Girl asked to have Nomad ride back on her.”

“I think her emotional scars have been healed by this visit,” I answer.

“Thank you pretty girl,” as Nomad, who is almost in tears as he mounts her for the return trip. “You have been so understanding.”

“I want to thank you,” Red Alpha answer. “You have forced me to face my demon from so long ago. I feel so much better.”

“Ill take Ruth,” says Electra. “You and Michael should fly on our new friends to give them some confidence in the humans of your tribe.”

“I agree,” I answer. “I'd like to ride on Tammy so she can be more comfortable with us. I'm sure that Michael has a ton of question for Tarmac about tactics. That was very clever of him the way he infiltrated Sin City.”

“I'm so frightened,” says Tammy as I go to sit on her.

“Relax, Tammy,” I tell her. “Lets just stay on the ground until you're comfortable with me sitting on you.”

“Electra was so frightened of me when I first found her a week ago hiding in pain after Pretty Girl tried to kill her in a fit of rage. I saw something in her that said that I had to help. We are now the best of friends.”

“Pretty Girl was probably the most frightened wyvern of all. She was so angry with humans because of what they did to her. The shackle on your leg was just a restraint to keep you from flying away. Her's was worse. It was a torture device design to inflict pain and injury if she tried to escape.”

“Two days ago, she was in so much pain that she flew to our base begging for our help. The shackle had caused a most painful infection in her leg. I'm sure that injury would have killed her by now had she not made the decision to seek our help. We removed the shackle from her leg, treated her for the infection, and stayed with her while she was recovering from that injury. The next morning she shocked us all when she asked Michael to ride on her. She has been such a pleasure to be with since. It's been so hard to believe that she is an Alpha who swore no human would ever ride on her. ”

“When you are ready, lets go catch up with the others. Our other 16 wyvern friends have found it most enjoyable to have humans ride on them. You're in control. I'll just sit here and enjoy the ride.” We soon take off.

“You're right,” answers Tammy after flying for several minutes. “It is most enjoyable. You are in perfect balance on my shoulders. You certainly weigh far less then that heavy chain. I'm feeling so much more relaxed now.”

“Can I ask you the details of how you were captured and able to escape?” I ask.

“I feel comfortable enough to talk about it now,” Tammy answers.

“The day before the Great Quake, two Beast Hunters, riding Argys, flew to my home in the mountains and stole an egg from my nest. I gave chase determined to get it back. They led me through a structure that I got trapped in. Then, they knocked me out with tranc darts and took my milk.”

“When I woke up, I found myself in the Arena with the restraint on my leg chained to the wall. I was so scared. Tarmac was nearby, chained to the wall by his collar. He told me not to struggle, but to be patient, to get some rest as we would have a long night ahead of us.”

“Emperor Nero and the elites were having this huge bachelor party. The Beast Master was with them. The dungeon guards that were minding the beast pens were getting drunk in celebration.”

“When they has all passed out well after midnight, Tarmac made his move. He snapped the link on his collar and helped me break the chain restraining my leg. He lost some teeth in that effort. We have been hiding near Nomad's camp in the mountains ever since.”

“After the Great Quake, we though that we were the only wyverns left until we saw your Alpha and lightning wyvern land at Nomad's camp.

“I can understand your fear of us,” I answer, “Nomad's brother specialized in capturing wild wyverns for the Emperor. The following morning of your escape, he captured Pretty Girl by using a live bait containing a tranc. She later found his camp and killed him for doing that.”

“I had all I could do to keep her from killing Nomad when we first landed in his camp. The mental pain from what had happened to her was more then she could bear. After she listened to his story of her capture, she broke down in tears and forgave him for what his brother had done to her.”

“Thank you for asking me what had happened so long ago.” answers Tammy. “It has made me feel so much more comfortable to be around you and your friends.”

“You're most welcome,” I answer. “I can feel how relaxed you have become since we started flying together.”

Nomad and Red Alpha are having a most interesting conversation about the past couple of days. “Thank you for asking me to ride on you,” Nomad tells Red Alpha. “I am most honored to have finally been able to see you up close and personal. It is so wonderful to have you as a friend instead of an enemy. How did you, Halsey, and Michael, become such close friends?”

“It was a month ago when I was first aware that there were humans living again on Scorched Earth. Sleeper and Paragon had first spotted them at the oasis near the Red Obelisk when they were first exploring the canyon on Morellotops. I had wanted to kill them all because of that dreadful shackle on my leg that was causing me so much pain. But they insisted that they needed observing when they took the morellotops into the water with them to escape a mega heat wave that had rolled in off the desert.”

“They observed them get other tames as they established a camp at the oasis, then constructed a pen to keep their tames safe at night from the wild creatures in the area. Then, one day, I was told that they had tamed Argys and while they had saddles and bridles on them when they were being ridden, I was told that the two birds were in no way restrained at all when they were back at their base.”

“I was still uneasy with their presence as the pain from the shackle had been steadily getting worse. Electra, who had been with Paragon the day they were flying on the Argys, suggested that I should go ask those humans for their help in removing that shackle.”

“The day they flew over from Sin City to our home in The Great Split, I was in misery from the pain the shackle was causing me. It upset me so when I saw them flying over the Great Split that I was sure that they had come to steal our eggs, so I ordered the other wyverns to attack them. When they knocked Sleeper out of the sky, I thought sure that they had killed her. I was so outraged that I took it out on Electra killing her parents as they tried to stop me. It was only the following day that I found out that Sleeper was still alive and that the humans had removed the tranc arrows and applied some sort of healing cream to the wounds on her neck before they let her go.”

“A day later, the pain got so bad that I couldn't stand it any longer. I made the decision to fly to their camp where they would either help me or put me out of my misery.”

“As I flew near their camp, I was so scared and crying from the pain that I didn't know what to do. That's when I saw Halsey riding on Electra coming out to see me.”

“I didn't know what to think. I thought that she had been killed when I saw all the raptors running around the Dome Ruin after she had managed to get away from me. But I became aware that while Electra was as frightened of me as I was of the humans in my weakened condition, I could see that Electra was in no way being restrained at all. So, I took a chance and asked him for help.”

“Halsey told me to land in the pen so they could help me.”

“I was so weak and disorientated by then that I literally crash landed when the chain got caught on the pen wall.”

“The pain was so excruciating that I was begging them to kill me. Instead, Michael, who was first staring at me in shock, place a shock lance on my neck and knocked me out.”

“When I started to wake up, I found Michael stroking my forehead. His friends had removed that dreadful shackle from my leg as Caroline and Pauline were cleaning up the wound it had caused on my leg.”

“Michael then asked me to eat a special piece of meat. He said that it would take away the pain. I was reluctant to eat it but when I did, I felt so much better.”

“His friends then brought me some water, raw meat, and some of that medicine they had given Sleeper. Then, Michael asked how I was feeling. I was so exhausted that I fell asleep while I was talking to him.”

“When I woke up the next morning, I felt so wonderful. That awful pain was gone. Michael and his friends had been with me all night. Paragon had come looking for me and landed next to them. When they removed the bandage from my leg, they found that it was nearly all healed up.”

“I asked Michael if I was his tame. He told me no. I got up and flew off but then decided that I needed to learn why Electra had become so fond of Halsey. So, I returned and ask Michael to fly on me.”

“What a surprising experience it turned out to be, to actually have a human fly bareback on me. I never expected it would be so enjoyable. I was equally surprised to see Caroline on Paragon and how she was enjoying the experience as well.”

“Such a remarkable story,” answers Nomad. “In all of our written history, there have been wyvern riders that have had close bonds with their mounts, but those were all egg tames. There are no records of any wild wyvern becoming so attached to any human, especially an Alpha.”

“It has been such a wonderful experience,” answers Red Alpha. “After what happened to me so long ago, I always thought that all you humans were evil. I so regret that I didn't ask you humans for your help much sooner.”

“It's quite all right Pretty Girl,” answers Nomad. “You had every reason in the world to be afraid of us. Just look how scared Tammy was when you brought her to my camp. I don't think she would have ever let us get close enough to her to remove that shackle if it wasn't for you.”

“I'm glad that Halsey is with her,” answers Red Alpha. “He should be able to help her overcome her fear of you humans.”

Meanwhile, just ahead of them, Michael and Tarmac are having a most interesting conversation. “I never knew that flying a human bareback could feel so good.” responds Tarmac. “Nero always rode me on that uncomfortable heavy platform saddle when I took him flying.”

“Professor Narcy has told me that the true wyvern fliers of the Dark Ages preferred to fly bareback.” answers Michael. “They were more one with their mounts that way.”

“I now understand why,” answers Tarmac. “It feels so natural.”

“What compelled you to pretend to be a tame in order to spy on the humans there?” ask Michael.

“Nero's Beast Hunters kept raiding our nest for eggs and kidnapping our females to steal their milk for their egg tames,” answers Tarmac. “When they started catching us to do battle in the arena, we needed to learn their tactics and behavior in order to devise a plan of attack and defense. Too many of us were being killed. Too many eggs being stolen. So, I volunteered for the mission.”

“I learned the only way I could slip in was to pretend to be someone's lost tame. To play dumb, to eventually become Nero's personal tame. I would plan an escape when I had all the information that I needed.”

“Tammy was captured on the day I had planned to leave. She was so frightened of being restrained in the arena. Nero was preparing to marry off his daughter and was holding a bachelor party in celebration. I knew that after midnight, everyone would likely be passed out drunk which would be the best time to escape. I decided to chance taking her with me, hide out in the Western mountains for a couple of days, then go meet the others to plan our attack on the day Nero's daughter was to be married and the entire city would be passed out drunk in celebration.”

“We made good our escape, hiding out in the Western mountains away from the other wyverns. But, our plans were disrupted by the Great Quake which destroyed the city for us. We never found any of the others until today when we saw a lightning and an Alpha wyvern in Nomad's camp.”

“That was so brave and clever of you when you knew how evil and dangerous those humans could be,” answers Michael. “You know that you took a huge risk taking Tammy with you. Someone not drunk could have heard the noise of you breaking her free. You could have been easily killed or punished had you been caught trying to escape and your mission had been discovered. That had to have been a most stressful experience.”

“Still, I don't fault you for doing so. You showed compassion for her by taking that risk to save her when you could have just left her behind to her fate. That was so noble and brave of you.”

“I wonder how Halsey is getting along with her?” ask Tarmac. “She's been so afraid of you humans ever since the day of her capture.”

“We're getting along just great,” Tammy answers as she flies alongside them. “Halsey has been so kind and patient with me. I am really enjoying having him fly on me.”

“I'm so happy to hear that,” answers Tarmac. “Michael has been so wonderful to be with. It has been a such a long time since any of us have had any joy in our lives.”

“Our camp is just ahead in the old arena,” I answer. “There are 16 humans and 16 wyverns there that would love to meet you.”

“I'm ready to meet them,” answers Tammy. “It has been so lonely with only the two of us hiding for all those years.”

“It's been such a remarkable day,” Ruth tells Electra “Who would of ever thought that I would be finding myself riding on a lightning wyvern.”

“It's been such a remarkable week,” answers Electra. “Going from having Pretty Girl trying to kill me to becoming the best of friends with Halsey and I. And, today, when she went from wanting to kill your husband to becoming a good friend of him.”

“All too soon, it's going to be over. In a couple of days, Halsey, Michael, and their friends are going to return to their world, possibly forever. I'm sure going to miss them.”

“You will always have us,” answers Ruth. “You can always come to visit anytime you want to.”

 

Chapter 18 The Ruins of Sin City.

While we were gone, Dr Sander's has started his survey in the half buried arena dominated by the Mantacore statue above what was a private booth for their leaders. “This must be where the rulers of this city conducted their special events,” says Dr Sanders.

Down below, there is a pit covered by a big iron grate. A skeleton of a wyvern in chains, along with pikes, broken armor, and human bones, scatter the floor. “That looks like the rest of the chain that held Pretty Girl,” says Professor Narcy as he studies the broken link from another chain connected to the base of the pit gate.

“Is there any other way into that structure behind those huge gates?” ask Dr Sanders.”

“There is outside, but its buried in tons of sand,” answers Denny.

“How can we get this gate open?”

“Stay back,” answers Tesla, one of the lightning wyverns that has come along to observe the survey. “I'll see if I can shatter the hinges.” It takes a full lightning charge on each of the three hinges to burn them loose from the door which falls in when Tesla kicks it down with his foot.

Looking inside, they find a chamber of horrors. “Petrified remains of caged and shackled T-Rexes, Carnos, Sabercats, Dire wolves, Mantas, Thorny Dragons, Terror Birds, Raptors.” comments Dr Sanders. “This place was a barn for housing the savage beasts for the arena.”

“And the other side, the slaves quarters,” answers Professor Narcy.

“No wonder this place gives Pretty Girl the creeps,” answers Paragon. “I now understand why she so hated humans after what must have happened here to her so long ago.”

“Did she ever tell you anything about this place?” ask Dr Sanders.

“No,” answers Paragon. “She wouldn't tell any of us what happened here or how that shackle and chain ended up on her leg.”

“Unfortunately, we have seen similar brutality in our ancient history back on Earth in the Colosseum of Rome,” answers Professor Narcy. “In addition to Gladiators doing battles with chained beast, there were large battles fought between Gladiators and Slaves. There is even evidence where the arena was flooded so that a naval battle could be fought with galleons for the pleasure of the emperor and the elite.”

Continuing their exploration of the city, they find a structure resembling a place of worship. There is a huge mural in back of an alter, depicting humanoid figures kneeling in front of a floating Obelisk as one of them ascends up to it. “One of the dangers of not following the Prime Directive in Star Trek,” says Tod. “If an advanced race reveals their presence too soon to a developing culture, they run the risk of being worshiped by them. That culture can become corrupt finally destroying themselves in the process.”

A room below is filled with headless skeletons, the skulls placed neatly on shelves above them.

“Disgusting,” answers Professor Narcy. “Like the Incas of Central America, these people were conducting human sacrifices to The Keepers. No wonder this city and all the other settlements here in Scorched Earth were destroyed. I would be offended if some culture offered up sacrifices to me.”

They continue exploring as they reach the market place. “Lots of signs where people were shackled to the market stalls,” answers Mary. “This must have been the slave market.”

“Looks like they kept a lot of goats and Lystrosaurus's here as well.”

“Most interesting,” answers Dr Sanders as they enter a entertainment district of the city. “This so reminds me of the Red Light District of Pompeii. There are signs everywhere advertising women, young girls, boys, and animals for sexual pleasure.”

“For all we know, this place could have been the Sodom or Gomorrah of our biblical times,” answers Tod.

As noon approaches, they head back into the arena to compare notes about their findings. They see us coming in to land. “There is a total stranger riding Pretty Girl and another riding Electra!” Sarah says in surprise. “Halsey and Michael are riding on two wyverns I've never seen before.

“This place still gives me the creeps,” Red Alpha tells Nomad.

“It's all right pretty girl,” Nomad answers. “This place can't hurt you any more.”

“Be gentle with Tammy,” I tell the others as they come up to meet our guest. “She's had a very bad experience with humans in this place.”

“I didn't know that there were other wyverns out there,” says Paragon.

“Tammy and Tarmac thought that they were the only ones left.” I answer. “They had escaped from the arena days before this place was destroyed. They saw us fly to Nomad's camp and took a chance that we could help them remove their restraints.”

“I thought that we were the only humans on this world.” ask Mary as the rest of the tribe and wyverns come up to visit with our guest.

“Nomad and his wife Ruth are the last of the original inhabitants,” I answer. “The Keepers arranged for us to find them when they asked Pretty Girl and Electra to take us to their camp site. Tarmac and Tammy found us while we were visiting Nomad's camp. They had been in hiding after having escaped from the arena a day before the Great Quake destroyed the place.”

“Our Gods can actually communicate with you?” Nomad ask in astonishment.

“Better sit down,” I tell Nomad. “This is going to take some time to explain.”

“The Keepers do not consider themselves Gods. We have only heard their voices or have been sent messages such as what happened today. We have never seen them in the flesh. We believe they are superior beings from an advanced civilization that have created this place for their scientific research. The three obelisk you can see floating in the sky are used for studying our behavior and teleporting between worlds. We do not come from your world. We come from a place called Earth. We have been told their study of us will be soon be over and we will be returning home.”

“As part of that study, we were given these implants to aid in our survival. They have proven most useful in allowing us to obtain those items we needed as well as aid us in obtaining our tames.”

“On occasions, The Keepers will drop us special supplies in those rotating beacons we call loot crates. The implants allow us access to the contents of those crates. One such crate gave me the items I needed to help Electra heal from her injuries when I first found her hiding in the dome ruins. The contents of that crate was responsible for the chain of events that led to my close relationship with Electra, Pretty Girl begging for our help, and Michael releasing her from suffering in extreme pain. All the wyverns have become good friends since.”

“Can you take us with you when you leave to return to Earth?” ask Nomad.

“Unfortunately no,” I answer. “Even if we could, you would be outcast in our world. What we can do, if you wish, is to relocate you to our base on The Center. It's climate is a lot more friendly then this place. Mary can show you how crop farming and pioneering life works there. You can do us a favor by caring for our tames when we leave.”

“We like to take our tames along when we go there,” answers Nomad.

“I wonder if The Keepers have somehow altered the creatures here to aid in our survival?” ask Ruth.

“I believe they did,” answers Dr Sanders.

“Looking through the tablets in the library here, I found a reference to the Morellotops being the result of genetic engineering to produce a herbivore that not only could thrive in this harsh climate and defend itself from predators, it could serve to carry water for its masters during long trips through the desert.”

“We learned how we could tap the water from its hump without harming it,” answers Nomad. “It taste like piss, but has on more then one occasion, meant the difference between life and death in the Sand Sea.”

“I have also seen that if one of them is attacked, they all come running to the aid of the other. They will fight to the death to protect their companions, even us.”

“Actually, I believe that all of the creatures here are genetically engineered.” answers Dr Sanders. “Even the ones that are extinct in our present world. Their size, intelligence, the way they can be tamed, and their abilities do not match anything that we know about them on Earth. It is as if they have been created for our exclusive use in these Arks.”

“There are exceptions to that rule of course. Many of the insects, the fish, the sand worm, and the big snakes are too stupid to be tamed. Then, there are some, like our wyvern friends here, that are so intelligent they are untameable. Yet, even they appeared to have been engineered for our use with their shoulders forming a natural saddle in addition to the fact that they enjoy having us ride on them.”

“What else have you found out about this Sin City?” I ask Dr Sanders.

“A most evil place,” answers Dr Sanders. “It appears that the people living here held sacrifices to the Obelisk of Ark when The Keepers revealing themselves too soon to those that lived here. We found such evidence in the stone mural at the back of a place of worship. The obelisk dominated its center with people kneeling on both sides as another ascended into it.”

“This arena they built to entertain their leaders and its privileged elites. We found evidence of all kinds of brutal bloody fights to the death between individuals and wild beasts. We found evidence of how they captured wild wyverns and secured them in chains so they couldn't properly defend themselves in such battles. They were responsible for the shackle that so tormented Red Alpha. We found where she was chained up in this arena.”

“We know,” I answer. “Nomad told us what happened to her some forty years ago. He forced Pretty Girl to face her nightmare over what happened to her so long ago.”

“Tammy and Tarmac told us what happened here as well and how they were able to escape before the city was destroyed.”

“We also found what they did to each other and the creatures living with them.” answers Dr Sanders. “The elites kept slaves and other creatures to use for their bidding and sexual pleasures. The evidence is there how torture was part of the indulging of those pleasures.”

“You are most correct,” answers Nomad. “The marketplace held daily auctions where the well to do would bid on those most desirable slaves and animals they felt would satisfy their lust. More often then not, those auctions would result in a fight over the bidding. Those feuds would often be settled in the arena.”

“When the great quake hit after Pretty Girl had escaped, we fled west into the Dune Desert. Ruth came with us and eventually became my wife. We watched a great ash cloud erupt from what is now The Great Split. It buried the city and suffocated everyone there.”

“We managed to find solid ground as the Sand Worms moved in to attack the survivors following us. We were able to return to our camps while they were busy eating them.”

“We have seen similar evidence back in early Earth's history in the ruins of two cities called Sodom and Gomorrah,” I answer. “A father and his two teen daughters escaped with their lives. His wife stopped to look back and was incinerated by the fireball that destroyed it. It is written in our holy book that she was turned into a pillar of salt.”

“It may explain all of the salt pillars I've seen scattered all over this land,” answers Nomad.

“Actually no,” I answer. “Those are natural formations. She was likely burned so quickly that her remains looked like a pillar of salt.”

“Another city called Pompeii was buried by a volcanic ash cloud. Like your Sin City, the sex trade was a thriving business where anything could be had for the right price.”

“That is most frightening,” Electra tells me. “Pretty Girl never told us what happened in this place. We only learned about it when Nomad told us how she was captured, then escaped from here.”

“I do not blame her,” answers Nomad. “It was only a few hours ago that I forced her to overcome the mental pain she had been suffering from it's evil. It is why she asked me to ride her back to this place. She wanted to thank me for helping her overcome that nightmare.”

“What is most frightening to me is we are seeing similar signs of such evil starting to take place again where I come from.” I answer. “It may be why The Keepers have allowed us to experience the Ark as many as four times in the past several years. They have been testing us to see if we are worth saving from the evil that is happening in my world, or not.”

“I do hope The Keepers protect you and your wonderful friends,” answers Electra. “I would be so sad to lose any of them especially you.”

“Thank you Electra,” as I hug her by her neck. “We will certainly miss you and your friends when we have to leave Ark.”

 

Gameplay note; On November 21, I found that room full of headless skeletons deep in the cave of the sandstone canyon.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 19. The Surprise.

 

(Author's note. That dream never happened for real.)

 

It is early morning as we break camp to head for the beach in preparation to sailing back to The Center. The wyverns have already clear away any threats to us making for a safe trip. Yet, Electra and Red Alpha are not with them. I'm left wondering what they are planning for us this time.

Michael and I are riding on Tarmac and Tammy flying escort. Neither one of them know where Electra, Red Alpha, Paragon, or the rest of the wyverns are or what they are up to. “I guess we will find out when they return,” I tell Tammy.

We follow the convoy as it heads across the desert to the Dome Ruins, then to the sea. We guide our two new wyverns friends to fly in lazy circles catching the thermals coming off the desert, then gliding in search of the next one nearest the convoy. “I never knew we could do that,” Tammy tells me. “It makes long distance flying so much easier.”

“You can also catch a boost along the slope of the steep mountains next to the Great Split,” I answer. “Along there, you are catching the thermal coming off the lava below as well as the push of the westerly wind coming off the desert going over the peak. It's an old hang glider flying tactic for remaining aloft for long periods of time. It even works on Ark with our primitive parachutes. That lift often goes high above the mountain range.”

“For the desert flight, we are looking for the base of a cloud. Where they are, there is usually a thermal forming it. You can tell when you hit one, you will feel the boost as you enter it and a loss of lift when you leave it. Watch the vultures. They use the thermals to fly to great heights with little effort as they look for dead or dying creatures in the desert.”

“I must apologize for being so scared of you yesterday,” answers Tammy. “I really enjoy having you fly on me.”

“That's quite all right,” I answer. “You had every reason to be afraid of us after how you were treated by the beast hunters so long ago.”

Reaching the beach site, we find four additional rafts and all of Nomad's tames and storage crates on the beach. They have been prepared for our extra tames and Nomad to ride back with us.

Paragon lands nearby to ask if their arrangements have met our expectations. “Outstanding,” I answer. “How was it possible for you to do these things for us?”

“The Keepers have given us the same ability to craft items as you have,” she answers. “We can even use the same creatures you have used in Ark to aid us in gathering the materials needed.”

“That's wonderful,” I tell her. “You even have the Specimen Implants in your left wing. It will make life so much easier for your kind. Use those powers wisely. Don't end up like that abandoned city or Pretty Girl before we came to her rescue.”

“Thank you for those kind words,” answers Paragon.

“I hope you understand when I say that you are my second best wyvern friend here.”

“I understand,” answers Paragon. “I'm so pleased with your close relationship with Electra. She's been so happy ever since she returned to us.”

We are about ready to sail back when Red Alpha comes flying in all excited. “Pretty Girl wants to show me something important,” I tell the others. “Start sailing for The Center. I will catch up with you later.”

She flies me back to the Great Split into the south end landing next to a new nest containing a light gray wyvern egg. Electra looks at me beaming with pride. Examining it I find that the parental stats imprinted to the egg is Electra's level of 92 and the father, my level of 90. It will hatch in six days.

“This is your egg?” I ask Electra.

“Yes,” she responds.

“How is a fertile egg possible when you don't have a mate?”

“After visiting The Keepers, I had this most wonderful dream being together with this kind and gentle gray male wyvern.”

“Oh! My! Gosh!” I interrupt in shock. “I had that same dream that I was that gray male wyvern who spent a most wonderful night with you. Level 90 is where I was after we had saved Pretty Girl. This has to be something The Keepers made possible. There is no other way this could have happened.”

“Somehow, I knew it had to be you,” Electra answers softly.

I hug Electra around her neck as I try to recover from the shock that it was possible for something like this to happen. Then, I suddenly find myself transformed into that gray wyvern. Red Alpha stares at me in shock.

“What just happened? “I ask.

“It was you!” answers an excited Electra as she embraces me with tears of joy nearly knocking me down.

“How am I going to explain this to my friends?” as I look at my strange new appearance through my implant.

“Your friends will understand,” answers Electra.

“Will you be OK when I have to head back to the raft?” I ask.

“Yes,” she answers. “You need to be with your friends. I will send someone for you when the egg hatches.”

“I hope The Keepers let me stay on Ark long enough so I can see our newborn when the egg hatches.” I answer.

After regaining my composure from the shock of turning into a wyvern, Red Alpha tells us, “I'll keep watch over your egg while you two go spend some quality time together.”

“Thank you Pretty Girl, you are most kind,” I answer.

It turns out to be quite a while before we return back to the nest. We find Red Alpha crying. “What's wrong Pretty Girl?” I ask.

“I so regret never having a mate,” she answers in tears. “The cursed shackle never allowed me to be intimate with any of the eligible males.”

“I wish I could help, but I can't,” I answer. “I made a commitment to be for Electra and Electra alone.”

“I'll try to understand,” answer Red Alpha who is still in tears.

Suddenly, Paragon flies in all excited. “Who is that gray wyvern with Electra?” she ask Red Alpha.

“It's Halsey,” she answers.

“Oh, that's so wonderful!” answers Paragon. “Her dream came true. But, why are you crying?”

“I so miss the company of a mate,” Red Alpha answers.

“Well, you better fly over to the Red Obelisk,” answers Paragon. “Something wonderful is about to happen.”

“Electra, you better come too. Your egg will be just fine.”

We all fly off to the Red Obelisk where we land around it in a circle. It is an interesting experience to actually be flying as a wyvern instead of riding on one.

Then, a real surprise, Electra's parents are returned to her. They are so surprised that she not only survived being attacked, but she now has a loving mate. Electra is crying tears of joy as they are reunited with each other.

The Red Alpha, meanwhile, is sobbing her head off, apologizing for all the awful things she has done to them the past. It is at that moment The Keepers start talking to us.

“Halsey, when we set up our experiment with your tribe and Electra, we never expected the two of you to become so emotionally attached to each other. We created your Avatar to allow the two of you to complete that relationship. You both have exceeded our expectations of that experiment.”

“We were speechless when we saw how Michael and your tribe worked so hard to save Red Alpha when you found her suffering so. We were equally amazed at Red Alpha, how she overcame her hate and fear of humans, to seek your help, and how grateful she was for your helping her recover.”

“To all of you. Forgiveness is such a hard thing to do when someone has treated you so badly in the past. You have all shown that you can forgive Red Alpha for what she did, just like Red Alpha so regrets having done those awful thing to you.”

“Red Alpha, we are so sorry you had to endure such pain for all those years. Because of the way you have responded after Michael and his friends came to your aid and how you forgave Nomad for what his brother had done to you, we have prepared a little surprise for you.”

“Hi, Pretty Girl,” a voice in the tone of the Nomad and Michael is heard coming out of the shadow. Standing there is a dark gray male wyvern with a black crest on its chest.

Red Alpha is standing there speechless. Then, she rushes over to him. “You've done enough crying pretty girl,” he says as they embrace each other. “Now, it is time for you to enjoy life.”

No doubt, the rest of the day and late into the night turned into one big happy party. But, I have to wonder if the others are getting worried that I haven't caught up with them as they sail to The Center.

You see, I never did get back to them that day as I promised. You will have to read the next chapter to find out what happens next.

 

Chapter 20 We return home.

 

“How is Halsey going to get back to us?” Caroline ask Michael as the convoy of rafts sail past Scorched Island.

“I would assume that one of the wyverns will fly him out,” answers Michael.

“Can they fly that far without resting?” ask Caroline.

“Quite easy for them to do so,” answers Michael. “They have the endurance, even our leveled up argys can now make that long trip.”

“Something extraordinary must be taking place with him and Electra,” answers Caroline. “I have never seen anyone get so attached to a tame before.”

“That's part of the problem,” Michael answers. “Electra is not a tame. Neither is Pretty Girl. They made a choice of their own free will to become our close friends. We had a long talk about that friendship when I rode Electra out to the Nomad's camp and Halsey was riding on Pretty Girl.”

“I never thought that I would miss a tropical thunderstorm,” says Caroline as it starts raining. “Scorched Earth was such a desolate place.”

“Has anyone seen Halsey?” ask Mary as the rafts all dock at North Tropical.

“No,” the others eventually answer.

“Then, I guess that we will have to wait until he shows up,” answers Mary. “So long as he is with Electra, he is in good hands.”

They land at the docks of Primitive Plus village and unload the tames from the rafts. The wolf pack is happy to be on familiar ground, the two new ones not sure about this new lush green surroundings. Patrick comes out to meet the Parcer they brought back from Scorched Earth. They both look happy to be in each others company. The Pteras are glad to see us, but have managed to go fishing on their own when the fish ran out in the Feeding Trough.

Our tames on The Center have thrived quite well without us in spite of being gone far longer then expected. With five day left on Ark, we make our preparations to release the rest of our tames where they can care for themselves in the safest environment we can find for them.

Nomad and Ruth are quite astonished of the village of Primitive Plus. Mary gives them the grand tour showing off the accommodations as well as the resident tames.

They are not sure what they should do with the Thorny Dragons given that they need to hunt for meat. Michael suggest sending them over to Volcano Island. He and Nomad take them there giving them their freedom. The local T-Rex quickly learns to leave them alone after he spends the rest of the day trying to remove the quills now sticking out of his face.

The Morellatops find a home on Scorched Island. There is vegetation there, no predator threats, and the temperature range is to their liking.

Denny take the wolves back to South Tundra which has always been their natural home They bid him farewell as he releases them back to the wild as has been done twice before.

The Jarboas stay with them for now. While their weather forecasting is less critical here then on Scorched Earth, everyone enjoys their cuteness and playful antics. The plan is to release them on Secluded Island with the Parcer pair before everyone has to report to the Green Obelisk for our return.

The day before the scheduled return, there is a surprise visit. It is late morning when eight wyverns appear to the North coming from Scorched Earth. “Halsey coming back,” announces Tod.

“Something not right,” says Michael as he places the spotting scope on them. “I see Electra, Pretty Girl, Tarmac, and Tammy, but there are two other gray wyverns with them and two lightning wyverns I have never seen before. The Dark gray has the name of Nicky and the light gray is named Halsey.”

“Is Halsey riding on any of them?” ask Mary.

“No,” answers Michael. “That is the mystery of the two gray males. Their names may hold that answer. Lets go ask them.”

“Sorry I'm late,” I say to the astonished group as I land. “It has been a most fascinating experience becoming a wyvern and being together with Electra. The Morellotops look so happy over on Scorched Island. We landed there to rest after that long flight across the sea.”

“How did you become a wyvern.” ask Mary.

“Ark Primal Survival,” answers Tod. “The keepers must be experimenting with the concept of an Avatar.”

“I am definitely in this Avatar,” I tell them. “But Nicky is unique. He has the personality of both Michael and Nomad without actually being them. I believe that The Keepers created him to fulfill Pretty Girl's emotional needs as a reward for her forgiveness from enduring the pain of all those years of suffering. She has been so happy ever since he came into her life.”

“When I left on Pretty Girl that day you were sailing back here, she flew me to see Electra. Electra had laid a fertile egg. It turned out that I am the father. The night after we saved Pretty Girl, Electra and I had this really strange dream of being together in an intimate setting. It turned out that The Keepers had made it happen. That's when I found myself in this Avatar. Electra has been so happy since.”

 

“Later that day, we were called over to the Red Obelisk where The Keepers returned Electra's wonderful parents to her. They flew here with us.”

“Pretty Girl was sobbing her head off. She was so sorry for what she had done to Electra and her parents. It was at that moment that The Keepers spoke to us and Nicky appeared out of the shadows.”

“We have had such a good time together that I lost all track of time.”

“I figured that we had better make the trip back here to let you know that I am all right.”

“Wow,” comments Michael. “My personality and Nomads are in Nicky. That is one unique way to remain in close contact with Pretty Girl.”

“What type of wyvern are you two?” ask Sarah.

“I don't know,” I answer. “Should we find out? Stay clear of that palm tree. I'm not sure what I will do with it.”

I hit a palm with my primary weapon. Nicky does the same with a second palm. My palms is frozen solid, then shatter into a million pieces when Nicky's palm is vaporized by an explosive projectile.

“You're a frost wyvern,” says Sarah. “That's awesome. Nicky is a night stalker, My mid evil history tells me they are very rare.”

We spend the next several minutes talking about the events on both Arks. Nomad and his wife Sarah come up to hug their Pretty Girl.

“Would you like to take a flying tour of The Center?” I ask Nomad.

“I'd be delighted,” answers Nomad.

“Why don't you ride on Electra,” I answer. “She would like to learn more about you.”

“Michael, Fly with me this one last time,” ask Red Alpha.

“Come on Ruth, I'll take you,” says Nicky.

“Professor Narcy, Helen, come fly on us.” ask Tarmac and Tammy.

“Chief Terry, Pauline, we'll take you,” answers Electra's parents.

“Dr Sanders,” I say. “Come fly on me. I don't bite, hard.”

Everybody breaks out in laughter.

“Ouch, you bit me!” exclaims Dr Sanders as everybody starts laughing again including me.

“We'll, you're so tasty,” I answer. There is more laughter as we take off.

We head South past the Green Obelisk of South Tropical observing the inhibited and uninhabited little islands along the way. “Wow, that flying reptile is nearly as big as us.” says Electra. “Is it dangerous?”

“No,” I answer. “The Quetz is a fish eater. Besides, we can fly a lot faster then it does. I had one three years ago on Ark. Q-Bert was a very loyal tame.”

“Is that volcanic island some sort of idol of worship?” ask Nomad.

“No,” answers Michael. “We call it Skull Island. We did find a friendly dragon living there name Draco.”

“I saw him once in my youth,” answers Pretty Girl. “He is much bigger then us with four legs instead of two. He was very nice.”

“He seems to have the ability to travel between Arks and is often in direct contact with The Keepers,” I answer. “He tends to leave us notes with instructions when The Keepers want us to accomplish some task or go to visit another location using the Obelisk.”

“That forest is so huge and beautiful,” says Electra.

“That is is,” I tell Electra. “And, very dangerous. We lost some loyal tames there in a surprise attack by a pack of high level Allasaurs on our last visit. Even you would risk serious injury if you were forced in a fight with them on the ground.”

We continue west to the great arch bridge, then fly under it turning North under the massive overhang. “What is over by those islands to the West?” ask Electra.

“I don't know,” I answer. “They only appeared when the Redwood Forest showed up during our last visit. This cavern appeared a couple of weeks ago. The Force Field has prevented us from flying over there.”

“That waterfall, it's huge,” exclaims Nomad.

“It's called Land's End,” explains Dr Sanders. “It used to fall off into nothing but now it lands in the sea far below.”

“A floating mountain!” exclaims Ruth. “I've heard of one but have never seen it.”

“It is actually hollow inside,” both Nicky and Michael say at once.

“Looks like you both think alike,” I laugh.

We make it back to the village as evening approaches.

“That was a most enjoyable tour,” says Michael. “Where will you stay for the night?”

“We will stay on Scorched Island, then leave early in the morning for Scorched Earth.” I answer. “Electra's egg is going to hatch soon. We need to be back there when it does.”

All too soon, it is time to leave Ark for the return to Earth. Mary had picked up a note with instructions on how to access the Obelisk for that return. Nomad and Ruth will bring the two rafts back to the village where they will live and take care of our tames. They now have specimen implants like us and know how they function.

But, there is one unknown concern. I am still with Electra and the wyverns in my Avatar. I do not know if I am going back home or will be spending the rest of my days on Ark.

“Is Halsey coming back with us?” Mary ask as she enters the access code.

“There is no way he can as long as he is a wyvern,” answers Dr Sanders. “We would all be in extreme danger if he did. I'm sure that he knows that.”

Mary enters the code for their return. There is a crackle of light as the view beyond becomes distorted. Then in a flash, Professor Narcy's expedition is back in the Sinai as Dr Sander's expedition returns to the Navajo dig.

“He didn't return,” says Mary to the others. “How are we going to explain his disappearance to the authorities.”

“You don't,” I say as I reappear with a piece of gray wyvern eggshell.

“Is that Electra's?” ask an excited Sarah.

“Yes it is,” I answer. “I find it hard to believe but I am now a father of a baby boy wyvern.”

“That's wonderful,” answers Sarah “And Paragon?”

“She has a baby girl. Her and my son are already playing together.”

“How is Pretty Girl doing?” ask Michael.

“She has been most happy since Nicky came into her life. She is so grateful for all the good things we have done for her. In fact, she laid an egg for the first time in her life this morning. Tammy laid one too. They are still so emotional. Both were crying tears of joy.”

“What about your Avatar?” ask Mary.

“He is still there with Electra,” I answer. “I am still there in him as I stand in front of you at this moment. You see, The Keepers made a special arrangement that has allowed me to come back to Earth, yet allowed me to stay with Electra in my Avatar. In short, I appear to be in two places at once.”

“Absolutely amazing,” responds Dr Sanders. “If I hadn't been there to see Ark for myself, you would be certified nuts. I can see how such a bond could form giving the amazing time I had with that male wyvern that took me for a grand tour of Scorched Earth. Even your Avatar was awesome to ride on. Just don't bite me again. That still hurts.”

“The truth is, you tasted terrible,” I answer as everyone starts laughing.

“For now, we will classify Electra's egg shell as that of a Titanasaur. No one, but us, will know the difference.”

“We agree, responds Chief Terry and Pauline. Our wyverns were such gracious and gentle creatures. No one must ever know they exist for real.”

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

It is a year later when Dr Sanders calls us together for a private meeting in the conference room. “Professor Narcy has sent us a video from his most recent expedition back into the Andes.”

We watch the video in awe as I go into a flashback, then return to reality. It is Chief Traska with his twin sons Marcy and Mincy. They are on Scorched Earth. The sons are both standing in front of two adult frost Wyverns holding a conversation with one of them. “There's Electra,” I say. “She looks so happy. There's Paragon with her young daughter and Tesla. And, there is Pretty Girl with Nicky and a young black night stalker. She looks gorgeous. I just can't tell which of the light grays are my son or my Avatar. They look so identical.”

“Now, I can tell,” I answer. “I am standing next to Electra. Chief Traska's sons can't believe that they are actually talking to me.”

“Professor Narcy told them the story of our adventure on Scorched Earth.” answers Dr Sanders. “They found it most fascinating.”

“His warriors were able to recover the three artifacts of Scorched Earth for the tributes in plans for challenging themselves with the Manticore, but, they canceled that challenge. They quickly made the decision that they would do no harm to any of these wonderful creatures for their talons. They said Halsey being one of them was reason enough. They would find another way.”

And, they did. They find a loot crate containing the required wyvern talons. But, that is an adventure for another day.

[rpicardi1]

Gameplay note; On November 21, I found that room full of headless skeletons deep in the cave of the sandstone canyon.

Not mentioned in the story. The order of the engram, also found in the cave of the Sandstone Canyon.

Hot? only because I posted the entire book in one setting.

Enjoy.

Back to working on Naked and Afraid.

[rpicardi1]

On November 24, a new game mechanic was added to Ark, the ability of tames to express pleasure in being leveled up. That has been added to a major update in Chapter 16 where a desperate Red Alpha wyvern seeks help from the humans she has been so afraid of.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 17 just got a major addition. Two new wyvern characters are introduced to the story, Tarmac, and Tammy. Both had escaped from the Arena a day before Red Alpha was captured. They find us when we visit Nomad's Camp.

I will be updating the rest of the story, mostly with minor additions of those two, in the near future.

[rpicardi1]

The story is now complete. Time to finish Naked and Afraid.

[rpicardi1]

Since December 7th, there has been a bunch of additional content added to the story with the Red Alpha, the alpha wyvern that so hated the humans until she was totally beaten by the cruel shackle on her leg and was forced to ask for their help.

Chapter 16 The Red Alpha

 

Trading stories of our adventures, we start preparing our caravan for exploring the abandoned city to look for clues of this ark and its origin. Everyone has been so fascinated with Electra and her ability to communicate with them as an intelligent being. Everyone has taken turns getting to know her. She is becoming more relaxed among us, no longer having that fierce look. I have even observed her taking some of the undergrad students for a ride to show them Scorched Earth from the air. I'm so glad that I had that gut feeling to attempt a tame instead of taking advantage of her weakened condition to kill her. She has proven to be so valuable to our visit on this Ark. Yet, I believe that she's been studying us as much as we have been studying her, that she was placed with us for some unknown purpose.

We will be packing tents for our temporary shelter in case we are surprised by sandstorms or megaheat. An adobe shelter has been packed on the Parcur. The Morellotops will be coming along as a water source. All the wolves will be in use to clear out raptors and other dangers. The Argys will be flying recon as well as I on Electra.

But, I am soon sensing a problem as we prepare for the expedition.

Electra tells me she is very nervous about us going on this mission. She tells me the city is close to the southern edge of The Great Split where the wild wyverns and their leader, the Red Alpha lives. She fears for our safety and her's. I ask her if we should abandon the mission and leave Scorched Earth. She tells me no, the expedition is too important to abandoned it.

I tell the others about her concern. Michael tells me that he is also concerned about the danger we may face given his encounter with the wild wyverns the other day and how close the ruins are to The Great Split where they live. I have given Michael the shock lance. The others now have tranc darts for their long neck rifles. We plan an attack strategy should we be forced into a showdown with the Red Alpha and the other wyverns.

Michael and I spend the rest of the day leveling up Electra and the Argys for maneuvering, speed, and endurance. She is so happy to be flying over the Badlands with us as it has taken her mind off the expedition. I soon feel confident that we should be able to deal with any threat and have the ability to outrun it if things go wrong.

Flying back to the base, we spot a white wyvern, with reddish brown trim on its wings, with a chain dangling from its leg flying close to the base. “It's Red Alpha!” shouts Electra in a panic. “Lets get out of here, please! I've got to hide, somewhere, anywhere!”

“Electra! Get it together!” I yell at her. “Our friends need you more then ever. We need to distract her so Michael and his friends can take her down.”

“Something is not right,” Michael tells us as he flies close by. “Red Alpha is flying alone. She has not made any attempt to attack the base. She's flying slowly, back and forth, like she can't decide what she wants to do. Through my spotting scope, I see blood on her leg by the chain shackle. She looks like she is in a lot of pain. She appears to be badly hurt.”

“I'm sorry I had to yell at you,” as I apologize to a stunned Electra. “Do you think that the other wyverns have rebelled against her?”

“I don't know,” Electra answers.

“How did she get that chain on her leg?” I ask.

“She never told us,” Electra answers.

“Lets go find out,” I answer.

We fly alongside the Red Alpha who appears to be more frightened of us then Electra is of her. She looks at Electra and I, studying us, not knowing what she should do. Then, she finally speaks to us. “Help me, please,” she says shaking in fear and crying from the pain.

“Land in the Argy pen,” I instruct her. “We will do what we can.”

Red Alpha heads for the pen, but is is obvious that she is coming in with very little control. “She's having trouble landing,” I warn Michael. “Ouch, the chain got caught on the wall. She just fell in. She's not getting back up”

Although still frightened by her presence, Electra lands in the Argy pen next to the crippled Alpha. Michael has already landed next to Red Alpha who is now lying on her side screaming in agony.

We land as the rest of the tribe rushes into the Argy pen. A crippled and badly frightened Red Alpha looks at Electra and I for a moment, then looks at Michael making eye contact with him. They stare at each other for a moment. Taking out the Shock Lance, he walks up to her, places the tip on the base of her neck, and fires it. Red Alpha is knocked out cold.

Caroline runs over to Michael and sees that look in his face. “What's wrong?” she asks.

“The Red Alpha,” answers Michael in shock. “She had that look in her eyes, a look of being in sheer agony, a look that said 'please put me out of my misery'. Then, she asked me to do so just before I knocked her out.”

“I saw that same look in my best friend Jerry in Vietnam. We were on patrol in some very thick jungle. A thorny vine pulled the pin out of his grenade. It ripped a hole in his side when it went off. He was screaming in agony just like Red Alpha. The medics shot him up with morphine in an effort to kill the pain. It didn't work. He died an hour later as the medivac was flying him out.”

“Can we save her?”

“Is she worth saving?” ask Caroline.

Electra then shocks all of us with her answer. “Before she looked at Michael, she looked at me begging for forgiveness.”

“I saw that too,” I answer.

“Then, lets get to work.” answers Caroline. “Lets get that thing off her leg. Mary, go get some narcs and medical brew. Someone bring up some raw meat and a large bucket of water for her.”

“As soon as you can, lets give her this other piece of super test meat.” I tell Michael. “ It should help relieve the pain.”

“Damn, the shackle has a lock on it,” says Denny.

“Is this the key?” I ask as I hand the iron key from the drop to Denny”

Working on the lock, Michael and Denny finally get the shackle unlatched. “Joe, Halsey, help us pull this thing off her. It's stuck in her leg.” It takes a solid tug by the four of us until the shackle finally comes loose falling to the ground with a loud metallic clunk.

“Oh how awful,” says Caroline, “That looks like a bone infection. No wonder she is in so much pain.”

“What a cruel device,” responds Michael as he has to look away from that terribly infected wound. “I think I'm going to be sick.”

“Get me some stimm berries, narcoberries, mejoberries, rare flowers, those rare herbs, water, and clean cloth,” orders Pauline. Her husband, Chief Terry, brings up the requested items from storage down below.

Caroline and Pauline go to work cleaning up the infection in the wound. Michael surprisingly is by the semi conscious Red Alpha's stroking her on the forehead. “Do you think Michael is suffering a flashback?” Caroline ask me.

“I don't know,” I answer. “I was doing the same thing to Electra when she needed our help.”

“We have a problem,” announces Michael. “Like the poison wyvern we knocked out the other day, I can't force feed her anything. She is literally starving to death. Careful everyone. She's starting to come to.”

Red Alpha starts to slowly regain conscious. She is still in a lot of pain. She sees the unlocked shackle and chain lying on the ground, then looks over at her leg to see Caroline and Pauline cleaning up the wound. She then looks at me and Electra. Then, she looks at Michael and starts crying.

“I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I never knew.” she says in a weak tired voice.

“Let it all out Pretty Girl,” Michael responds “Let your emotional state start healing along with your leg.”

Michael hands her the Super Test Meat. “Eat this,” he tells her. “This will take away the pain.”

“Michael,” answers Red Alpha in fear. “I don't want to become a tame.”

“It's all right,” answers Electra. “Super Test Meat won't tame you. It didn't tame me. It will make you feel a lot better.”

She is very reluctant to eat, but with our encouragement, starts to nibble on the Super Test Meat, then eats it. With a sigh of relief, she gets a drink from the bucket of water, takes some of Mary's medical brew, eats several pieces of raw meat, then ask Michael to keep stroking her forehead.

“How are you feeling?” ask Michael.

“So much better,” she answers in a weak and tired voice.”I'm so relieved that awful thing is off my leg. I so regret that I didn't listen to Electra suggesting that I should have asked you humans for help, that you are not as evil as I believed.”

“Electra, I'm so sorry that I hurt you. I never knew.”

“Get some rest, Pretty Girl. I will stay here with you.”

“Thank you,” answers Red Alpha. “I never knew a human could show such compassion. Keep stroking my forehead. It feels so relaxing.”

“I understand why you felt otherwise. I'm glad that Halsey had the key he found in a supply drop for that evil shackle. Without it, we might still be working to get that thing off you. You don't have to tell me how it got there. Get some sleep Pretty Girl. Let your leg heal up. We'll be here for you.” She is out cold before Michael has finished talking to her.

Caroline and Pauline finish cleaning up the wound on Red Alpha's leg. They have applied a poultice Pauline has made from the berries and herbs to pull out the infection. Then, they bandage up the wound.

We stay with her all night. Even Electra is concerned about Red Alpha's condition. She no longer appears to be afraid of her as we stay by her side.

It is early morning when Joe alerts us to a wyvern flying in the distance. I get on Electra and fly out towards it.

As we approach the golden red fire wyvern, there is a sudden surge of excitement in Electra. “Do you know that wyvern?” I ask her.

“It's my friend Paragon,” she answers excitingly. “I so missed her.”

“Electra, It is you,” answers an excited Paragon as we get closer. “I was so afraid Red Alpha had killed you when you and your parents didn't return.”

“She almost did,” answers Electra. “If it wasn't for Halsey and his friends, I would probably be dead by now.”

I find myself hanging on for dear life as the two excited wyverns accidentally collide into each other. “Girls!” I say in alarm. “Find a place to land before we have another injury to contend with.”

“Are you all right?” ask Electra as she lands on a nearby plateau.

“I'm fine,” I answer. “It's just a long ways to fall without a parachute. I understand the excitement of missing your friend after what you have gone through. I don't want to see anyone of you get hurt.”

“I'll try to be more careful.” answers Electra.

“Where did you find this human?” ask Paragon.

“Actually, he found me.” answers Electra. “I was hiding in the dome ruins after Red Alpha had attacked me. Raptors were gathering outside waiting for me to die. Halsey and his friends found me and came to my aid. He stayed with me until I was fully recovered. We have been so fascinated with each other since.”

“That's wonderful,” answers Paragon. “You were always so hopeful that humans were not as evil as Red Alpha kept telling us.”

“You won't believe what happened last night,” I tell Paragon. “Red Alpha paid us an unexpected visit asking for our help. She is at our base recovering from her injuries caused by that chain shackle. She was in so much pain that she was begging us to put her out of her misery.”

“I'm not surprised,” answers Paragon. “It had been bothering her a lot ever since your tribe showed up on this Ark. After she came back from chasing Electra, she caught the chain between some boulders while landing. She was screaming from the pain. She got it loose but kept trying to hide from us how much pain she was in. She hadn't slept or eaten in days. Then, yesterday afternoon, she just disappeared. Everyone is out looking for her.”

“Come with us back to our base,” I answer. “The spikes inside that shackle had caused a severe infection. I'm told that can be extremely painful if not treated. She could use the comfort of a familiar friend while she is recovering. She was still asleep when I left the Argy pen. Michael has been with her all night. She has grown quite attached to him already.”

We make a quick hunting trip dispatching the raptors near the base and taking one of their kills. Then we return landing in a now crowded Argy pen.

“Welcome back Pretty Girl,” says Michael as she wakes up and looks around.

“Please, don't let me wake up,” answers Red Alpha. “I've having this wonderful dream that I am pain free, that there is no chain shackle on my leg any more, that humans are my friends.”

“You're not dreaming Pretty Girl,” answers Michael. “You were just so tired after having such a bad day.”

“I haven't slept like that in ages,” Red Alpha tells Michael. “I feel so much better.”

“You have a friend here to see you,” Michael tells her.

“Paragon!” Red Alpha answers in surprise. “I'm so glad that you came.”

“I was so worried about you after you got caught in the rocks, then disappeared.” answers Paragon.

“Does anyone have anything for me to eat,” ask Red Alpha. 'I'm starving.”

“We anticipated that,” I answer. “Michael, there is raw meat on Electra and Paragon you can use.”

“Thank you,” answers Red Alpha as she starts chowing down on the food. “I never knew fresh raptor could be so tasty.”

“A miracle,” says Caroline as she removes the dressing on the leg to check it. “The swelling is gone and your leg is nearly fully healed.”

“Am I now your tame?” Red Alpha ask Michael with concern.

“No,” answers Michael. “My implant says that you are wild. You are free to go.”

Red Alpha stands up, then launches herself into the air to fly away. “Well, I guess that's the last we see of her.” says Michael.

“Maybe not,” I answer. “She has circled back, she's coming in to land.”

“Michael,” shes says as she lands and kneels by his side. “Come fly on me.”

“I don't believe it.” Paragon says standing there in shock. “She swore she would never let a human fly on her when she saw them on the Argys.”

“I would be most honored to fly on you,” Michael tells her. “How do I get up on her?” Michael asks me as he walks up to her.

“Paragon, Can I use you to show Michael how to get up on Pretty Girl?” I ask her.

“I'm as curious as Pretty Girl is about you and Electra,” answers Paragon. “Go ahead and get on me.”

“Just use her forearm as a ladder to get up on her shoulder. “I answer as I climb up on Paragon. “Then, sit like this on her shoulder in front of this large spike at the base of her neck. You can use that spike to guide her in flight or just let her do the flying.”

Michael gets on Red Alpha and sits on her shoulders in the natural saddle. “How are you feeling?” he ask her.

“This is so amazing,” answers Red Alpha. “I never knew it would feel so natural to have a human sit on me.”

“You have a level up?” Michael says in surprise. “How is that possible when you are not a tame?”

“Better level her up on something.” I tell Michael. “I've been getting them with Electra as well.”

“OK, then, Pretty Girl, lets go for your stamina.”

“Oh! That feels so wonderful,” she responds with a sequel of delight as we all stand there in shock by her reaction.

“The Keepers must have added something new,” I answer. “I've never seen a reaction like that before on a level up, not even on Electra.”

“Paragon, how are you doing?”

“This feels wonderful.” answers Paragon. “Electra told me I would find having you ride on me quite pleasurable.”

“You got a level up too.” I tell Paragon. “We've never seen that in any wild creatures before. Can I level you up on something?”

“Go for it,” answers Paragon.

“Better hold on,” I tell Paragon. “it could be quite a pleasurable response.”

“That felt fantastic,” responds Paragon in a squeal of delight. “Thank you for that experience.”

“I've noticed that reaction on all of our tames when I checked on them this morning,” answers Mary. “Something was added to the leveling ability to our specimen implants that they find quite pleasurable when we give them a level up.”

“Whatever it was, it felt so wonderful.” says Red Alpha. “Michael, where shall we go for that ride?”

“You're in charge Pretty Girl,” answers Michael. “Take me for a ride.”

“You better go follow them,” Caroline warns me as they take off towards the badlands. “She's still not at one hundred percent. She is still emotionally quite fragile.”

“Electra, bring Caroline with you,” I shout down as I take off abruptly on Paragon.

“I hope I didn't startle you taking control of you like that,” I apologize to Paragon as I let her take over.

“I understand your concern,” answers Paragon. “We need to stay close to Pretty Girl until she gets used to this new experience.”

We catch up and fly alongside the Red Alpha who is enjoying the experience of flying with Michael on her. “How is she doing?” Caroline ask Michael as Electra catches up with us.

“She really enjoying this,” answers Michael. “She's in total control and feels so relaxed.”

“This is so unexpected,” answers Pretty Girl. “It feels so, wonderful,”

“Why did you decide to come back for me when you were free to go?” ask Michael.

“When I started flying away from your base, I became curious why Electra had become so attached to Halsey. Then, I realized how much of a risk the rest of you took to help me, especially when I had sent in Sleeper to attack you two days ago. Even though you told me I was free to go, I had to come back, to learn more about you and your tribe.”

“I'm so glad that I came back for you. This is such a wonderful feeling with you flying on me. I never believed that was even possible. And, Paragon, she just told me she is enjoying having Halsey flying on her. That is so incredible, so unexpected.”

“I'm so glad to have you as a good friend instead of an enemy,” answers Michael. “We were all dreading the day you would show up with all of your friends, that we would be forced into a fight with you.”

“When you showed up alone by our base yesterday, Electra was so frightened that Halsey had all he could do to keep her from taking off and hiding somewhere. It was only when she realized that you were not a threat that he was able to get her to fly alongside you.”

“When I decided that I had no choice but to seek your help, I had no idea what to expect,” answers Red Alpha. “I was in so much pain that I no longer cared what would happen to me. I just wanted that pain to end. Then, I saw Halsey riding on Electra beside me. I saw how scared she was of me, but I also saw that she was not being controlled by any restraint at all, that he was just sitting on her, like you are on me. So, I took a chance and asked him for his help. I'm now so glad that I did, that you decided to help me when you could have so easily put me out of my misery.”

“We didn't know what to expect,” answers Michael. “An injured creature in the kind of pain you were in can be extremely dangerous. While I was able to approach you to render you unconscious with the Shock Lance, I had no idea what would happen when you would wake up or how much pain you would still be in after we had removed that awful shackle. It was so embedded into your swollen leg that it took four of us to pull it open. It made me sick just to look at that badly infected injury. Because wild wyverns cannot be tamed, we had no way to keep you sedated or force feed you anything to start the healing process.”

“When I woke up, I was still in a lot of pain. Then, I became aware that you humans had removed that awful shackle, that your wife and her friend were applying something on that wound that felt quite soothing. That's when I looked at you and started crying.”

“I didn't want to eat that Super Test Meat. I had heard that creatures can be force tamed by it. I was so afraid of becoming a tame. Yet, It was such a relief when it deadened the pain in my leg when I finally did eat it. I'm sorry that I fell asleep so soon after I ate the food you offered me and drank some water. I was so exhausted from the stress I was under the past several days.”

“It's quite all right,” Michael answers. “According to our Survivor Handbook, “a wyvern cannot be forced tamed by Super Test Meat. Still, I'm glad that we had it. It helped to relax you by taking away the stress of being in such pain.”

“I'm so glad that we didn't end up killing each other,” answers Red Alpha. “Becoming friends with you humans was so totally unexpected. This feels so much better. It's feels so natural.”

“Our convoy is getting ready to start on its way to the city ruins. Would you like to fly escort with us?” Michael ask as they land back in the pen.

“Absolutely,” Red Alpha answers. “It has been such an unexpected pleasure having you fly on me. I'd love to fly escort with you.”

I am back on Electra who is most happy to have Paragon by her side and so relieved that Red Alpha is no longer her enemy. Paragon is delighted to have Caroline ride on her as they both strike up a conversation about her and Michael. And the Red Alpha, she is thoroughly enjoying Michael's company as she becomes accustomed to the emotional stimulus of him riding on her. She is so happy to be flying pain free for the first time in ages.

As the pace is slow, we fly the wyverns in large lazy circles around the convoy. It's hard to believe we can get them to soar so gracefully.

Most of the dangerous creatures flee in advance of the caravan and the wyverns overhead. The one exception, a sand worm, is quickly dispatched by Paragon, Electra, and Red Alpha. It provides raw meat for all.

Rounding the southern peaks, we spot a lightning wyvern in the distance flying over the desert. “Everyone is out looking for you,” Paragon tells Red Alpha. “Let's go see who it is.”

As we get closer, Paragon recognize the lightning wyvern. “It's Tesla, my mate” she tells us.

“I can't believe what I am seeing,” says Tesla as he flies in and circles us. “Electra, I was so sure that you had been killed by Red Alpha. You look so fantastic. I'm so glad that my Paragon has her best friend back.”

“Red Alpha? Is that really you? I've never seen you look so happy. How did you get rid of that chain shackle? You have a human riding on you? Electra and my Paragon as well? How is that possible?”

“I was so wrong about these humans,” answers Red Alpha. “Michael and his friends are not like the others of so long ago. I was so desperate to get rid of the pain that I took Electra's advice, to seek their help, or let them put me out of my misery.”

“When I fell into their camp screaming from the pain, Michael and his friends came to my aid. They unlocked and removed that cursed shackle. Halsey had the key and special meat that dulled that awful pain. Caroline and Pauline cleaned and bandaged the wound it had caused. They fed and stayed with me all night. When I woke up this morning, I felt like I was reborn.”

“Michael said that I was free to go, that I was not his tame. Instead, I chose to stay with him. He, and his friends, are so wonderful to be with.”

“Caroline has been great to talk to,” answers Paragon. “Their tribe is down below with their tames. We are escorting them to the city ruins so they can do a study of what happened there. Go tell the others that Red Alpha is with us, that she no longer has the shackle on her leg that had caused her such torment, that she is so glad that she asked these humans for their help.”

Tesla flies off to the North as we continue back to the caravan. “There are two more wyverns to the West,” I announce as we turn to intercept them.

“That's Zippo and Torch,” announces Red Alpha. “I never knew that everyone was going to be so concerned about me after the way I had been treating them the past several days.”

“Electra you look so marvelous,” announces Zippo. “Is that Red Alpha you are flying with? I've never seen her look so happy. Last time I saw you she was so mad she wanted to kill you.”

“There's a humans riding you!” says a shocked Torch. “Even on Red Alpha who swore that she would never let one ride on her?”

“I was so wrong about them,” answers Red Alpha. “They came to my aid when I was in such need. Come, fly escort with us. Their caravan is heading to the ruin city to study what happened to it.”

The wyverns continue talking among themselves as we reach the outskirts of the city ruins by noon. “That arena gives me the creeps,” Red Alpha tells Michael. “It has such bad memories.”

“I understand,” answers Michael. “Lets land on this nearby ridge.”

As the tribe sets up a base of operations among the edge of the city, Denny spots a green wyvern flying in from the West. “Isn't that the one we tried to tame a couple of days ago?” Denny asks Michael.

“Sleeper will be OK,” answers Paragon. “She understands why you had to knock her out the other day.”

Sleeper comes in and lands by the five wyverns. She is so surprised to see Electra again and Red Alpha without a chain on her leg. She walks over to talk to Michael and Denny.

“We're sorry that we had to knock you out with tranc arrows the other day,” they both tell her. “We didn't have tranc darts at the time.”

“That's OK,” answers Sleeper. “I understand your having to defend yourself when I was ordered to attack you. I'm just glad that you didn't try to kill me when you knocked me unconscious.”

“That was never our intention,” answers Michael. “After we knocked you out, we were going to tame you but found out we couldn't. So, we left and kept an eye out for danger until you were able to wake up and leave.”

“I'm so glad to see Red Alpha so happy.” answers Sleeper. “She had been suffering so the past several days.”

“We are so glad she let us help her.” answers Michael. “She has been so wonderful to be with ever since.”

As we finish setting up camp and securing it from any threats, the other wyverns continue flying in until there is a total of 18 of them in our camp. After a lot of excited conversation among themselves, then talking to Red Alpha and Paragon, Michael gets us together for an announcement. “Don't expect to get anything else done today. They all want to have the experience of us flying on them.”

Michael, Caroline, and I are on our three we rode out on. Given that Michael is on Red Alpha, Sleeper asks for Denny. The rest are picked up by the remaining wyverns, even the doubting Dr Sanders who is picked by Tesla.

It is a most remarkable afternoon of flying over the entire area of Scorched Earth. We get the grand tour of The Great Split up close. It is quite hot along the Lava River but our Gille and Desert Armor protects us well. By late afternoon, we return to camp.

I tell Electra to go spend the rest of the day with her friends. Michael tells Red Alpha to do the same. They are both so reluctant to leave us but go ahead after promising to return in the morning.

“What a remarkable day,” says Michael. “Who would ever believe that we would end up with wyverns as such good friends, especially an Alpha.”

“They all seem to be enjoying us as much as we were enjoying them,” answers Sarah.

“Zippo and Torch were most fascinating,” answers Chief Terry and Pauline. “They really enjoyed having us ride on them. They were as surprised by the experience as we were.”

“Tesla was remarkable.” answers Dr Sanders. “I literally though that I was having a discussion with one of my graduate students. I was quite astonished at his knowledge of our mid evil history.”

“I still don't understand,” says Professor Narcy. “According to The Survivor's Handbook, wild wyverns cannot be tamed. Night Shadow and Nightmare looked so fierce. Yet they were so gentle enjoying every minute with us, as Helen and I were enjoying talking to them. They even allowed us to conduct a complete examination and study of the poison wyvern. They were thoroughly enjoying all of the attention.”

“I'm as puzzled as you are,” I answer. “Even though they both ate Super Test Meat, Electra was never a tame. Neither was the Red Alpha. We did absolutely nothing to the other 16 wyverns that could have tamed them, yet we were able to ride and level them up as if they were our tames.”

“The Survivor's Handbook says Super Test Meat won't tame creatures that cannot be tamed. That was proven when we gave it to Electra and Red Alpha. What it did was to relieve the pain they were in and start the healing process of their injuries. They all made the choice of their own free will to be our good friends.”

That night, I have this really weird dream that I am on Ark as a wyerm spending a most wonderful night with Electra. Strange, I think when I wake up. That experience felt so real.

In the morning, we are treated to quite a sight. The wyverns have cleared out every threat in the area. Red Alpha, Electra, Paragon, and Sleeper, drop us off raw meat for our carnivorous tames. They have even brought us berries for our herbivores, campfire wood, and several metal drums of water.

“How did you know?” I ask Electra who is so glad to see me again.

“In the evening, we were called to the Red Obelisk for a visit by The Keepers. They were so pleased with how things worked out between your tribe and us. They provided us with the metal containers so we could bring you water from the oasis.”

“Then, that confirms the special contents from that strange drop before I found you,” I answer. “The Keepers gave us the tools needed to restore the balance between us on this Ark and your wyvern friends. It was your destiny to be the key to that success.”

“Why the sad face?” I ask her.

“The Keepers asked me to tell you that in seven Ark days, your tribe will be returning to your world possibly leaving us forever.”

“Don't be sad,” I tell Electra. “We knew that day would be coming once their study was over. Enjoy life on this Ark with your friends. Help raise their youngsters. We will certainly not forget you and your friends who gave us a most thrilling adventure. There is always that chance that we will be back again.”

 

Author note;

 

The update of November 24th added emotional responses to tames when level up are applied. They range from dancing in joy to various vocal responses. Most interesting is the wyvern squeal of delight followed by flapping of the wings.

[rpicardi1]

There is also more with the visit to Nomad's village and the two wild wyverns that show up there.

Chapter 17. The Nomads.

 

With being resupplied by the wyverns and all threats to us and our tames removed from the surrounding area, we have been freed to conduct a complete survey of this abandoned city. Red Alpha and Electra want to take Michael and I to explore a part of Ark that none of them have ever been to. Dr Sanders, Professor Narcy, and Mary tell us to go ahead and have a good time. Most interesting of all, Red Alpha has asked me to fly on her. She has a ton of questions she wants to ask me about my relationship with Electra. Electra has asked Michael to fly on her. She has a bunch of questions to ask him about Red Alpha. Why do I have this feeling those two had planned this out ahead of time?

We take off heading Northwest towards a mountain range across from the Dune Desert. We find that the force field is no longer in effect. That confirms the fact that we are on an alien planet and no longer in a simulator.

“Is Electra your tame?” ask Red Alpha.

“No,” I answer. “Like you with Michael, I found her in need of my help. She was hiding in the dome ruins, badly hurt, and so afraid of what was going to happen to her next.”

“The pain from the shackle was driving me insane the day Electra suggested that humans didn't appear to be so evil and I should ask for their help. I got so angry after Sleeper fell from the sky that I wanted to kill her.”

“After talking with her last evening, I'm so glad that I wasn't successful. She really likes you.”

“I know,” I answer. “We have become so close since the day I first saw her in need. I really like her. She's been so fascinating to be with.”

“I'm so happy for the both of you.” answers Red Alpha.

“When I fell into your Argy Pen, the pain was so bad that I was begging Michael to kill me. I'm so glad that he didn't. Do you know why he was staring at me like that when he got off his Argy and we made eye contact?”

“He saw that look of agony in your eye and had a flashback from the Vietnam War.” I answer. “Fifty years ago, he lost one of his best friends to a terrible combat accident. Like you, his friend was in so much pain that he was begging to be killed. His team did everything they could to save him and relieve the pain, but, in spite of their best efforts, he still died in total agony while en route to a field hospital. In spite of how scared we were of you, Michael became determined that we had to save you. His wife supported his decision. The rest of us joined in with total disregard to our own safety.”

“Thank you.” answers Red Alpha. “In spite of how frightened I was of you and your tribe, I'm so glad that I decided to take a chance that humans could help me. I wish now that I had done so much sooner.”

“I'm still wondering if The Keepers had planned this all along,” I answer. “Without the wyvern milk, and super test meat I found in that strange loot crate, I would have never been able to help Electra recover from her ordeal. Without her, the outcome could have been a disaster for us all. Without the key and the shock lance to knock you out, I don't know how we could have removed that shackle from your leg.”

“There must be something else they have planned for us,” answers Red Alpha. “They asked us to take you two to the mountains ahead. They wouldn't tell us why. They said that we would find out when we arrived.”

“Looks like we will soon find out Pretty Girl,” I answer. “I see a settlement up ahead. My spotting scope shows tamed Morellotops, two tamed thorny dragons, and two individuals.”

“Their camp appears to be more primitive then ours,” answers Michael. “Just some tents and storage boxes next to a well.”

“Steady Pretty Girl,” I tell her as I sense her uneasiness over the presence of the strangers. “We need to know what they are doing here.”

Sensing her building anger as we land, I grab my crossbow as I warn Michael that Red Alpha is having a flashback. He rushes over to calm her down. Electra is right close behind me with a fierce look. The elderly stranger and his wife drop their weapons as they stare at us frozen in fear.

“Tell us why this alpha wyvern is so angry with you that she wants to incinerate this place?” I ask sternly.

“It was forty years ago,” Nomad answers nervously. “Emperor Nero of Sin City wanted an Alpha Wyvern to do battle in the Arena for selecting a brave warrior to marry his daughter. He hired my brother to go capture one.”

“When my brother ask me to help, I refused to do so telling him that he was inviting a disaster if he ever captured one.”

“As he knew where there was one living in the mountains by the Dune Sea, he staked a parasaur there as bait. It contained a tranquilizer hidden under its hide. A Red Alpha came in for an easy meal and fell unconscious shortly afterwards.”

“I watched from a distance as his team loaded her into a wagon and took her into the Arena.”

“When the Beast Master placed the shackle on her leg in the Arena, she woke up screaming in anger and killed him. She struggles to get loose, finally breaking the chain that secured her to the gate of the pit.”

“Then, all hell broke loose.”

“She climbed into the grandstand facing the viewing booth as the spectators below fled in panic. Nero's guards attacked her with crossbows and lances. Using a fire attack, she incinerated them, Nero, and the other elites that were in the viewing booth, then flew off. During the confusion, I was able to take the key chain off the dead Beast Master and escape.”

“A violent earthquake shook the land. The sky turned black as the ground split open separating the Western Peaks from the Sand Sea. Lava bombs rained from the sky. My brother and I managed to escape the destruction that quickly followed. A day later, I went to my brother's camp to find that it had been burned to the ground. There were wyvern tracks with signs that a heavy chain was dragging on the ground. I can only conclude that the Red Alpha had got her revenge on him.”

“I wanted so badly to undo that wrong, to somehow capture the Red Alpha so I could remove that shackle the Beastmaster had placed on her leg. But as fate has it, I never saw her again.”

“Why is your alpha wyvern crying?”

“As fate would have it, Pretty Girl is that very Red Alpha your brother captured forty years ago. Until the day before yesterday, that shackle was still on her leg. She still suffers from the emotional scars of living in such pain.”

“All these years of suffering,” answers Red Alpha in tears.” Hiding from you in fear while you were searching for me, and all I would have had to do to rid myself of that torment was to let you find me to remove the shackle. I've been so wrong assuming that all you humans were so evil.”

“Come to us Nomad,” Michael says. “Bring your wife with you. Rub her on the forehead. She really likes that.”

“I'm speechless,” comments Nomad after spending several minutes with her. “I never knew wild wyverns were so intelligent. I have seen those that were raised from stolen eggs. They were no more intelligent then our tames.”

“Some of us tried to tame the wild adults and juveniles.” answers Nomad's wife Ruth. “We found that they could not be tamed. How did you manage to tame these two, especially your Red Alpha?”

“We didn't,” answers Michael. “They are still wild. They made the choice on their own free will to be our good friends.”

We are interrupted when Electra reports that two other wyverns are flying in towards us. One has a chain shackle on its leg while another wears a collar. “Who are they Pretty Girl?” Michael ask.

“I do not know,” she answers “I'll go find out.” She flies out with Electra to meet them. They land some distance out for several minutes, then they all fly back to land near Nomad's camp.

“The one wearing the collar belonged to Emperor Nero,” answers Nomad. “His name is Tarmac. He is suppose to be his tame. I do not know the one with the chain shackle. She must have escaped from the arena some time before Pretty Girl was captured.”

“Be gentle with Tammy,” answers Red Alpha as she walks up to us. “She's very frightened of humans.”

“Nomad, do you still have the set of keys you took off the dead beast master?” I ask.

“Yes,” Nomad answers. “I believe it is a master set.”

“Lets go see if we can remove that shackle from her leg.” I answer.

“I'm so frightened by them,” says Tammy as we approach her.

“Tammy,” Red Alpha says sternly to her. “Be brave. Let these humans remove that shackle from your leg. They are friends of mine.”

Approaching her slowly as Tammy watches us shaking with fear, Nomad looks at the shackle on her leg with a sigh of relief. “Thank the Ark Gods, this one is just a restraint and not that spiked one that caused our Pretty Girl so much grief. This should be the key to unlock it.”

“Let her watch us remove it,” I tell Nomad. “She's so frightened of us.”

Nomad inserts the key into the lock which unlocks easily. We both grab each side of the shackle to open it and place it on the ground next to her foot.

“Thank you,” Tammy says with a sigh of relief. “That thing has been most irritating with that chain catching into the rocks and trees.”

“Let us rub your forehead,” I tell Tammy. “You will find it most comforting.”

“Go ahead and let them,” instructs Red Alpha. “It really feels good,”

“You're right, that is most relaxing,” answers Tammy as she starts calming down, then lays down in front of us.

“How did you know we were here?” I ask Tammy as we sit beside her.

“We saw an Alpha and a Lightning Wyvern fly over to the camp,” She answers. “We thought that we were the only wyverns left after the great quake, so, we decided to fly here to investigate. When we seen you humans by them, I was afraid. But, then I saw how they were not being restrained at all when they flew out to see us. Pretty Girl convinced me that you wouldn't harm us and that you could remove the chain shackle from my leg.”

“Is Tarmac still Nero's tame or is he now wild?” ask Nomad.

“I have always been wild,” Tarmac answers. “I was able to convince the beast master that I was someone's tame that got lost. I did so in order to observe him and the humans that had been capturing us, so we could devise a means of defense against their tactics. I played the tame game as if I was one of those dumb egg tames until the day Tammy was captured. The night before the Great Quake, I decided that it was time to leave. I was able to snap the link on my collar and help Tammy get loose.”

“I'm sorry that we didn't talk to you sooner,” answers Nomad. “I assumed that you were one of those egg tames of Nero's. Can we have a look at that collar?”

“Yes,” answers Tarmac as he lower his head to our level.

“Excellent, just a pin lock on this one. Let me search through the Beast Master's key chain.” A key is found that unlocks it as we take the collar off of his neck.

“Thank you for removing that thing” Answers Tarmac. “Are we now your tames?

“No,” I answer. “Both of you register on my Specimen Implant as wild.”

“What brings you out this way in the Dune Desert?” Nomad ask me.

“We are over by the abandoned City studying what happened there.” I answer. “Pretty Girl and Electra were asked to bring us over here. Would you like to help us in that study?

“Certainly, answers Nomad and Ruth.”

“How about you two?” as I look at Tarmac and Tammy.

“What if we are captured again?” ask Tammy in fear.

“It's safe.” I answer. “The city has been dead for years. Pretty Girl killed the Beast Master, Nero and his guards when she escaped. The Great Quake destroyed the rest of the place. There is nothing left to harm you any more.”

“I don't believe it,” Michael tells me. “Pretty Girl just asked Nomad to ride back on her.”

“I think her emotional scars have been healed by this visit,” I answer.

“Thank you pretty girl,” as Nomad, who is almost in tears, mounts her for the return trip. “You have been so understanding.”

“I want to thank you,” Red Alpha answer. “You have forced me to face my demon from so long ago. I'm feeling so much better now.”

“Let me take Ruth,” says Electra. “You and Michael should fly on our new friends to give them some confidence in the humans of your tribe.”

“I agree,” I answer. “I'd like to ride on Tammy so she can be more comfortable with us. I'm sure that Michael has a ton of question for Tarmac about tactics. That was very clever of him the way he infiltrated Sin City.”

“I'm so frightened,” says Tammy as I go to sit on her.

“Relax, Tammy,” I tell her. “Lets just stay on the ground until you're comfortable with me sitting on you.”

“Electra was so frightened of me when I first found her a week ago hiding in pain after Pretty Girl tried to kill her in a fit of rage. I saw something in her that said that I had to help. We are now the best of friends.”

“Pretty Girl was probably the most frightened wyvern of all. She was so angry with humans because of what they did to her so long ago. The shackle on your leg was nothing more then a restraint to keep you from flying away. Her's was much worse. It was a torture device design to inflict pain and injury if she tried to escape.”

“Two days ago, she was in so much pain that she flew to our base begging for our help. The shackle had caused a most painful infection in her leg. I'm sure that injury would have killed her by now had she not made the decision to seek our help. We removed the shackle from her leg, treated her for the infection, and stayed with her while she was recovering from that injury. The next morning she shocked us all when she asked Michael to ride on her. She has been such a pleasure to be with since. It's been so hard to believe that she is an Alpha who swore no human would ever ride on her. ”

“When you are ready, lets go catch up with the others. Our other 16 wyvern friends have found it most enjoyable to have humans ride on them. You're in control. I'll just sit here and enjoy the ride.” We soon take off.

“You're right,” answers Tammy after flying for several minutes. “It is most enjoyable. You are in perfect balance on my shoulders. You certainly weigh far less then that heavy chain. I'm feeling so much more relaxed now.”

“Can I ask you the details of how you were captured and able to escape?” I ask.

“I feel comfortable enough to talk about it now,” Tammy answers.

“The day before the Great Quake, two Beast Hunters, riding on Argys, flew to my home in the mountains and stole an egg from my nest. I gave chase determined to get it back. They led me through a structure that I got trapped in. Then, they knocked me out with tranc darts and took my milk.”

“When I woke up, I found myself in the Arena with the restraint on my leg chained to the wall. I was so scared. Tarmac was nearby, chained to the wall by his collar. He told me not to struggle, but to be patient, to get some rest as we would have a long night ahead of us.”

“Emperor Nero and the elites were having this huge bachelor party. The Beast Master was with them. The dungeon guards that were minding the beast pens were getting drunk in celebration.”

“When they has all passed out well after midnight, Tarmac made his move. He snapped the link on his collar and helped me break the chain restraining my leg. He lost some teeth in that effort. We have been hiding near Nomad's camp in the mountains ever since.”

“After the Great Quake, we though that we were the only wyverns left until we saw your Alpha and lightning wyvern land at Nomad's camp.

“I can understand your fear of us,” I answer, “Nomad's brother specialized in capturing wild wyverns for the Emperor. The following morning of your escape, he captured Pretty Girl by using a live bait containing a tranc. She later found his camp and killed him for doing that.”

“I had all I could do to keep her from killing Nomad when we first landed in his camp. The mental pain from what had happened to her was more then she could bear. After she listened to his story of her capture, she broke down in tears and forgave him for what his brother had done to her.”

“Thank you for asking me what had happened so long ago.” answers Tammy. “It has made me feel so much more comfortable to be around you and your friends.”

“You're most welcome,” I answer. “I can feel how relaxed you have become since we started flying together.”

Nomad and Red Alpha are having a most interesting conversation about the past couple of days. “Thank you for asking me to ride on you,” Nomad tells Red Alpha. “I am most honored to finally see you up close and personal. It is so wonderful to have you as a friend instead of an enemy. Can I ask how you became such close friends with Halsey and Michael?”

“It was a month ago when I was first aware that humans were living again on Scorched Earth. Sleeper and Paragon had first spotted them at the oasis near the Red Obelisk when they were exploring the canyon on Morellotops. I had wanted to kill them because of that dreadful shackle on my leg that was causing me so much pain. But Paragon insisted that they needed more observing when she saw them take the morellotops into the water with them to escape a mega heat wave that had rolled in off the desert.”

“She observed them getting other tames as they established a camp at the oasis, then constructed a pen to keep their tames safe at night from the wild creatures in the area. Then, one day, I was told that they had tamed Argys and while they had saddles and bridles on them when they were being ridden, I was told that the two birds were in no way restrained at all when they were back at their base.”

“I was still uneasy with their presence as the pain from the shackle had been steadily getting worse. Electra, who had been with Paragon the day they were flying on the Argys, suggested that I should go ask those humans for their help in removing that shackle.”

“The day they flew over from Sin City to our home in The Great Split, I was in misery from the pain the shackle was causing me. It upset me so when I saw them flying over the Great Split. I was so sure that they had come to steal our eggs that I ordered the other wyverns to attack them. When they knocked Sleeper out of the sky, I thought sure that they had killed her. I was so outraged that I took it out on Electra killing her parents when they tried to stop me. It was only the following day that I found out that Sleeper was alive and that the humans had removed the tranc arrows and had applied some sort of healing cream to the wounds on her neck before they let her go.”

“A day later, the pain became so bad that I couldn't stand it any longer. I made the decision to fly to their camp where they would either help me or put me out of my misery.”

“As I flew near their camp, I was so scared and crying from the pain that I didn't know what to do. That's when I saw Halsey riding on Electra coming out to see me.”

“I didn't know what to think. I thought that she had been killed when I saw all the raptors running around the Dome Ruin after she had managed to get away from me. But I became aware that while Electra was as frightened of me as I was of the humans in my weakened condition, I could see that Electra was in no way being restrained at all. So, I took a chance and asked him for help.”

“He told me to land in the pen where they could help me.”

“I was so weak and disorientated by then that I literally crash landed when the chain got caught on the pen wall.”

“The pain was so excruciating that I was begging them to kill me. Instead, Michael, who was staring at me at first, placed something he called a shock lance on my neck and knocked me out.”

“When I started to wake up, I found Michael stroking me on the forehead. His friends had removed that dreadful shackle from my leg as Caroline and Pauline were cleaning up the wound it had caused.”

“Michael then asked me to eat a special piece of meat. He said that it would take away the pain. I was reluctant to eat it, so afraid of becoming his tame, but when I ate it, I felt so much better.”

“His friends then brought me some water, raw meat, and some of that medicine they had given Sleeper. Then, Michael asked how I was feeling. I was so exhausted that I fell asleep while I was answering him.”

“When I woke up the next morning, I felt so wonderful. That awful pain was gone. Michael and his friends had been with me all night. Paragon had come looking for me and landed next to them. When they removed the bandage from my leg, they found that it was nearly all healed up.”

“I asked Michael if I was his tame. He told me no. I got up and flew off but then decided that I needed to learn why Electra had become so fond of Halsey. So, I returned and ask Michael to fly on me.”

“What a surprising experience it turned out to be, to actually have a human fly on me bareback. I never expected it would be so enjoyable. I was equally surprised to see Halsey on Paragon and how she was enjoying the experience as well.”

“Such a remarkable story,” answers Nomad. “In all of our written history, there are stories of wyvern riders that have had close bonds with their mounts, but those were all egg tames. There are no records of any wild wyvern becoming so attached to any human, especially an Alpha like you.”

“It has been such a wonderful experience,” answers Red Alpha. “After what happened to me so long ago, I always thought that all you humans were evil. I so regret that I didn't ask you humans for your help much sooner.”

“It's quite all right Pretty Girl,” answers Nomad. “You had every reason in the world to be afraid of us. Just look how scared Tammy was when you brought her to my camp. I don't think she would have ever let us get close enough to her to remove that shackle if it wasn't for you.”

“I'm glad that Halsey is with her,” answers Red Alpha. “He should be able to help her overcome her fear of you humans.”

Meanwhile, just ahead of them, Michael and Tarmac are having a most interesting conversation. “I never knew that flying a human bareback could feel so good.” responds Tarmac. “Nero always rode me on that uncomfortable heavy platform saddle when I took him flying.”

“Professor Narcy has told me that the true wyvern fliers of the Dark Ages preferred to fly bareback.” answers Michael. “They were more one with their mounts that way.”

“I now understand why,” answers Tarmac. “It feels so natural.”

“What compelled you to pretend to be a tame in order to spy on the humans there?” ask Michael.

“Nero's Beast Hunters kept raiding our nest for eggs and kidnapping our females to steal their milk for their egg tames,” answers Tarmac. “When they started catching us to do battle in the arena, we needed to learn their tactics and behavior in order to devise a plan of attack and defense. Too many of us were being killed. Too many eggs being stolen. So, I volunteered for the mission.”

“I learned the only way I could slip in was to pretend to be someone's lost tame. To play dumb, to eventually become Nero's personal tame. I would plan an escape when I had all the information that I needed.”

“Tammy was captured on the day I had planned to leave. She was so frightened of being restrained in the arena. Nero was preparing to marry off his daughter and was holding a bachelor party in celebration. I knew that after midnight, everyone would likely be passed out drunk which would be the best time to escape. I decided to chance taking her with me, hide out in the Western mountains for a couple of days, then go meet the others to plan our attack on the day Nero's daughter was to be married and the entire city would be passed out drunk in celebration.”

“We made good our escape, hiding out in the Western mountains away from the other wyverns. But, our plans were disrupted by the Great Quake which destroyed the city for us. We never found any of the others until today when we saw a lightning and an Alpha wyvern in Nomad's camp.”

“That was so brave and clever of you when you knew how evil and dangerous those humans could be,” answers Michael. “You know that you took a huge risk taking Tammy with you. Someone not drunk could have heard the noise of you breaking her free. You could have been easily killed or punished had you been caught trying to escape and your mission had been discovered. That had to have been a most stressful experience.”

“Still, I don't fault you for doing so. You showed compassion for her by taking that risk to save her when you could have just left her behind to her fate. That was so noble and brave of you.”

“I wonder how Halsey is getting along with her?” ask Tarmac. “She's been so afraid of you humans ever since the day of her capture.”

“We're getting along just great,” Tammy answers as she flies alongside them. “Halsey has been so kind and patient with me. I am really enjoying having him fly on me.”

“I'm so happy to hear that,” answers Tarmac. “Michael has been so wonderful to be with. It has been a such a long time since any of us have had any joy in our lives.”

“Our camp is just ahead in the old arena,” I answer. “There are 16 humans and 16 wyverns there that would love to meet you.”

“I'm ready to meet them,” answers Tammy. “It has been so lonely with only the two of us hiding for all those years.”

“It's been such a remarkable day,” Ruth tells Electra “Who would of ever thought that I would be finding myself riding on a lightning wyvern.”

“It's been such a remarkable week,” answers Electra. “Going from having Pretty Girl trying to kill me to becoming the best of friends with Halsey and I. And, today, when she went from wanting to kill your husband to becoming a good friend of him.”

“All too soon, it's going to be over. In a couple of days, Halsey, Michael, and their friends are going to return to their world, possibly forever. I'm sure going to miss them.”

“You will always have us,” answers Ruth. “You can always come to visit anytime you want to.”

 

[rpicardi1]

More revision coming in the near future. I will just update the above.