“So, can you break down what you saw? Describe it,” asks Adam. He was standing next to Grace on the edge of the boat, cruising to Avetoro.

“It was large, about 6 feet at the shoulders. It walked on two legs, had sharp teeth, and spikes on almost it’s entire body. It also had this really weird lower jaw, like it has a really thick dip in it around the back. If I’m being honest, it looked like a dinosaur.”

Adam nodded his head, taking out a Post-It from his pocket

“Why are you carrying sticky notes? Are you just always ready to write something down?”

“Yeah, just about,” he answered.

He continued, doodling on it for a few more seconds before showing it to Grace.

“That looks like a 7 year old’s attempt to draw a t-rex. Here, give me one.”

He passes one to Grace as she makes a more accurate and detailed illustration of the creature.

“More like this,” she said, holding it to Adam.

“Two things. First, I’ll definitely avoid this thing. Second, you draw really well,” he said

“Thanks, but really there is a more pressing issue on that island than just that.”

“Yeah, you mentioned it in your brooding, there’s three of them?”

“That wasn’t brooding, that was me thinking about something I try to never think about, and yes. There’s three. Before it attacked me, I heard a roar in the distance. Like a cassowary but it also kind of sounded like a crocodile grumble. Anyway, the one that attacked me did the same roar, and a third one roared in the distance.”

“And what part of the island were you at?”

“About where we’re about to dock, I was right next to a swamp.”

“That lines up, there's a large covered bayou called Ma-”

The boat shook over the waves, water splashing onto the old deck. Everyone who was on the boat speed-walked to the indoor barracks, and Grace followed suit. Before she got inside, she caught a quick glance at a hole in the deck, and she stopped. It was a square trapdoor, you wouldn’t be able to see it when closed. Inside it was dark, but a faint light came from behind the steps leading down into it.

Grace decided that everyone would be distracted by the rough waters to notice her enter, so she carefully but quickly descended into the galley.

Inside it was musky, and the remains of old wood walls were barely holding onto the wall. Luckily, as Grace was slowly stalking down, the old wooden steps did not creek. She stops halfway and turns around to see the light coming from a rusty lamp, which barely illuminated the galley enough for Grace to see two men inside.

“Why did you tell us this was legal?” asked one of the men. He was whispering, but one where you're also yelling.

“We’re heading to an island without any government permission, not to mention this is a suicide mission!”

“That’s because we’re not with them, we’re with the U.S.,” said the other man, who Grace could recognize as Charles.

Charles continued, “And that’s also why we have so few mercs. To keep people from looking for the things in that hell of an island.”

“And you think sacrificing 30 guys to C.A.B. while trying to find Gerning is a good way to do that?”

“How do you- no, it is not a good idea. But it is the only available one. I don’t know how you know about C.A.B., but it looks like the team will be down a member.”

Charles quickly pulls a pistol with a silencer out of his pocket and shoots the other man in the head. The silencer really didn’t do its job well, but the waves hitting the boat hid the sound. Grace put her hand over her mouth, and the man fell to the floor.

“Too bad, he was a good guy. Now, I just need to get rid of Bennet to keep C.A.B. secret.”

After hearing this, Grace hurried back up the steps, hoping the stairs did not creek or Charles did not see her. She gets back on the deck, now drenched from the sea spilling onto the boat.

She walks carefully but swiftly to the barracks, seeing the team talking to each other inside. Grace saw Adam sitting on a bench along the wall, and went over to sit with him.

“Hey, did you hear that too?” he said.

“Gunshot?” asked Grace.

“Yeah, most of the other guys in here didn’t. Probably from the noise the ocean is making right now.”

“I know what it’s from. Charles just shot someone below deck.”

“What?”

The creek of the metal door to the barracks overrides him, as Charles stepped in. He pulled a grim face, not obviously fake unless you knew what he had done.

“Men, I have some sad news. When I walked below deck to escape the waves, I saw Luke put a gun to his head and commit suicide. I assume most of you didn’t hear it, the gun in question had a silencer over it. He left no note, but when we return from this mission I’ll tell his family of his fate. A funeral service will be held soon, as we bid this soldier farewell.”

Everyone in the barracks looked at each other, back and forth, concerned expressions to be seen on every person.

“Why’d he kill him?” whispered Adam, trying for Charles not to hear.

“Charles knows about what I saw, I think he called it ‘C.A.B.,’ and the guy he killed knew it too,” Grace responded, in a similar whisper.

“Wait, then that would mean-”, his face went into one similar to Charles’, only it was genuine.

“He’s coming for you too.”

* * *

The boat slowed after the waves subsided, drifting forward in the sea.

“Hey, Grace,” said Adam, “Charles just said we’re getting close.”

“I’m aware. I remember the last time I was here, and there should be a fog bank covering the boat any minute now,” Grace responded.

“Careful sailin’ through these parts! We can’t see anythin’!” yelled a Scottish man from outside.

Grace gets up from the bench inside and walks out, Adam tailing behind. The visibility on the deck is skewered, with the fog preventing any sight from over four feet.

“See. Fog bank. We should be there in about 20 minutes,” said Grace.

The boat still navigated smoothly, with no sharp rocks hiding in the haze. After ten minutes of straight sailing, the fog cleared, and the island of Avetoro was in sight. The boat was heading straight for the Cala de Coral docks.

“You alright?” asked Adam.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just thinking of what we should all put in our obituaries.”

“Don’t be so negative, we might not even see it at all. Be a bit positive about this, okay?”

Grace stared at the tropical island, trees towering up and tall mountains in the distance past the ocean cliff.

“Fine, but I still think that we’re all gonna die.”

The boat glided on the water, entering the gulf and being free entirely of the mist. Patches of dead gray coral jut out of the water, breaking easily as the boat passed through to the dock. It was worn concrete, looking utilitarian and decrepit from the jungle that claimed it. The boat’s engine is cut, letting it drift smoothly to the dock as two men jumped off onto the dock. A third man throws a mooring rope to the pair, to which they catch and anchor to a rusty cleat.

A long wooden ramp was carried from the galley and placed on the edge of the ship. Many of the other members of the team were carrying supplies out from the galley, some including tents, weapon boxes, food, and an ATV. Once everything was loaded off, camp was set up in a meadow next to a bayou.

“Damn, with how thick it is I’m surprised we were able to navigate through it,” thought Grace, observing the dark mass of trees.

The meadow itself was marshy and moist, mosquitos were always buzzing and biting people. The marsh in general was alive with frogs croaking, turtles resting on the edge of the water, and birds wading inside of the murky ponds.

“Attention! Everyone stop what you're doing and gather here,” yelled Charles from the center of the campsite. Everyone gathered around him, and Grace stood next to Adam.

“I want to go over some things before we start venturing into the island. First, the humidity and temperature out here is hell, so you might hallucinate-”

“What do you mean, heat or humidity wouldn’t cause someone to see things!” shouted one guy from the team.

“Don’t question it. If you do, then you won’t like the answers.”

He physically backed off and shut up, and Charles continued.

“As I was saying, if you see these hallucinations, then there is a chance you die. If you have any hallucinations, I have a special squad among you to investigate. Second, we’ll be sending a scouting team after camp is set up to get a route through the swamp.

“It’s composed of the following seven people; Jens Allen, Drew McDonald, Harris Wright, Gavin Young, Jaden Jones, William Morris, and leading the team is Adam Butch. Once you are done setting up camp, arm yourself with pistols and go through the swamp and find a route to the other side. And be careful, the thing’s you’ll see might seem real, but they are not. You are all dismissed.”

The group dismissed everyone but Adam went back to their tasks as he turned to Grace.

“So, he wants us to go into the swamp,” he asked

“Yep.”

“Which is super dark and has no visibility.”

“Definitely.”

“Might have deadly armor dinosaur things.”

“Probably.”

“And all I would have to defend myself is a pistol?”

“That sums it up.”

“We’re dead. So, so very dead.”

“I know, I told you, but how about just in case you take a rifle?”

“We don’t have any, just pistols and tranq guns.”

“Wow you are definitely dead. Also, hold on, tranq guns? Instead of rifles? Can you show me?”

“Sure, follow me.”

The pair walk through the camp, everyone working to put it together, to the second tent put up. It was next to Charles' tent, the largest, and this one was decently large. Inside it was a small storage tent for the weapons. Pistol cases, lots of ammo boxes, and large rifle cases. Adam takes one of the large cases and opens it, revealing a 84 caliber rifle.

“What the hell?” said Grace, observing the rifle, “They want to capture it?”

“How’d you get to that conclusion?”

“They know about a large, elephant sized carnivorous creature with armor and probably thick skin that definitely is something people would find valuable. Did you think I would say something stupid like ‘Why would they bring a large tranq gun instead of a real gun?’ It’s not like it’s some movie or book where there’s some big secret to be discovered. I mean it might be something else, like taking DNA, but my bet’s on capturing it.”

“Well, yeah I thought you might, but not because your dumb. Luckily, it also can take regular bullets. They had a pair on the boat, which they said to intentionally leave behind. I snuck them here after you told me about the Carkylonyx.”

“The what’s-it now?”

“It’s what I named the creature, since ‘it’ is not a very good name. It looks like a Carnotaurus, it has the spikes or plates of an Ankylosaurus, and it has a huge hook claw like Baryonyx.”

“First, layman’s terms, I don’t know dinosaurs. Second, that’s really similar to ‘C.A.B.,’ so you might just be on to something. Third, you grabbed actual ammo? That’s great!”

“Thanks! Also, carnotaurus is the one with bull horns and SUPER tiny arms, ankylosaurus is that spiky tank one with the club tail, and baryonyx is like the one with a sail but without the sail.”

“Still don’t speak dinosaur nerd but definitely bring those actual bullets.”

He picks up the gun, puts it on a strap and slings it over his back. He grabs a case of the tranqs and the pair exit the tent. They see the camp put together and a fire being lit in the center of the site, while a group of people wait on the outskirts.

“Wow. How long were we there?” asks Adam.

Grace pulls up her arm to look at her watch, “Uh, about 10 minutes.”

“Huh, I guess then we’ll be going any minute now.”

Adam runs over to a duffel bag, takes the box of actual ammunition out, and puts some in his pockets.

“So, I’ll see ya’ in a bit,” he said.

“Got it. Just don’t die to whatever-you-called-it.”

“Carkylonyx, and I definitely think we won’t die.”

He walks off to the group and says something to them, before they depart into the marsh.

“Shit, he didn’t tell me what the swamp was called. It doesn’t matter but it’d have been useful information!” thought Grace.

* * *

Grace sat by the fire on logs, staring at the dark swamp. The crickets started chirping an hour ago, and she didn’t know when the sun had started setting. It felt like forever since the scouts had left.

“Damn it, they got lost, didn’t they. Or got killed by whatever Adam named it. Carkylonyx, I think? Yeah, yeah that feels right.” She turned away from the darkness and looked toward the fire and around camp. Most people were sitting by it on other logs, some set up a teepee to cook some of the canned foods and rice they brought. One guy approached Grace, carrying a bowl of gumbo from one of the cans.

“Hey, you alright?” he asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine, fuck off,” Grace responded.

“Damn, what’d I do?” he asked again, with a bit of a hurt tone.

“Nothing. It’s just the only person I trusted here probably died. They haven’t come back yet.”

“Die? What d’you mean?”

“Again, nothing.”

Grace got up and walked to her tent, near the edge of camp. Just as she was about to walk in, she caught a shine from the swamp. She looked back and sees it again, with slight movement from the grasses.

“The hell?” she whispered, and slowly walked over.

She got to a few feet from a small pond, with some frogs sitting around it and a fallen log in reeds. She heard a barky-chirp noise from the reeds, and something poked a head out from them.

Grace couldn’t see it completely, but it was about the size of a beagle. It's head had a sort-of boxy shape, with a beak and a frill. It had bright blue eyes, but the sclera was black, like a spider-monkey. It looked tan, with violet and white highlights around the frill. It chirped again, and inspected the clearing. It stopped darting it’s head and looked to it’s right, staring. Grace also turned to look, and saw a burst of light blue come from the reeds. It called out, like an alert similar to a spider-monkey, and it ran into the reeds.

The bright blue bursted out of the reeds, rising the size of a small elephant, and chased towards where the frilled creature went. It’s footsteps were hard, stomping through the water and mud of the bayou. Grace ran back to the camp quickly, and heard the stomping footsteps fade away, eventually stopping.

She reached the camp, and the man who sat with her approached her.

“Damn, what hap-”

“Not right now, where the hell is Charles?”

“Uh, he’s in the main tent, but why d-” Grace didn’t hear the rest as she rushed into the largest tent, right next to the ammunition test. Charles was sitting down at his desk, looking at files with drawings of creatures.

“Listen, we both know what I saw two years ago. I saw you kill the guy who also knew on the boat. And I know you want to kill me too to keep it secret, but this is important. I just saw something bright blue on the outskirts of the swamp chasing after some small scaly thing with a frill. And I think you know what it is.”

He stared at Grace with shock, but quickly disperses it to a serious expression. He pulled out a file of a dinosaur, something that fit Adam’s description of one of the dinosaurs he said.

“Baryonyx,” he said, “Found in the UK during the early Cretaceous. We made two, but it’s been two years so there could be several. They eat meat, and are very territorial. We should evacuate immediately, get the men to arm themselves with the tranqs and prepare themselves.”

Before Grace can leave, a scream was be heard outside, followed by a loud crocodilian roar.

“Damn it, it's too late.”