The burning pain in his shoulder fueled a white-hot rage that erased the last vestiges of the fifteen-year-old boy. Isaiah was no longer a spectator of his own body; he was a force of pure, prehistoric fury.He charged down the cracked runway, his massive three-toed feet striking the concrete with the force of falling boulders. Each impact sent tremors through the ground. Ahead of him, the plane's engines screamed at a desperate, high-pitched whine as Nash throttled them to their absolute limit.Cooper was running for his life, his heavy boots slapping frantically against the asphalt. He looked over his shoulder, his face a mask of pure, unadulterated terror as Isaiah's massive, scarred snout loomed closer and closer."Wait! Don't leave me!" Cooper screamed.But the plane was already moving. It was lifting off, gaining speed.Isaiah didn't stop. With a burst of speed powered by adrenaline and a metabolism operating at a hundred percent, he lunged forward. His massive jaws snapped shut just inches behind the running mercenary.Cooper dived to the side, rolling across the runway as the plane's wing swept dangerously close to his head.Isaiah ignored the fallen man. His amber eyes were locked on the metallic bird that was trying to escape his wrath. The plane was banking hard, pulling up into the air, its metal body scraping against the tops of the tree line.Isaiah lowered his center of gravity, coiled his powerful leg muscles, and leaped.It was a display of raw, terrifying power that defied the laws of physics for a creature of his mass. His claws left massive gouges in the concrete as he propelled his multi-ton frame into the air.CRASH.Isaiah's massive snout and chest collided violently with the left wing of the aircraft.The impact was catastrophic. The high-tensile metal of the wing crumpled like a soda can under Isaiah's immense weight and power. The left engine exploded in a violent shower of sparks and black smoke, ripping itself completely free from the fuselage.The plane, stripped of its lift and balance, spun violently out of control. It let out a metallic scream of tearing metal as it careened sideways, slicing through the tops of the banyan trees before slamming hard into the dense jungle canopy several hundred yards away. A dull, heavy explosion echoed through the valley, followed by the sound of groaning metal and snapping branches as the wreckage settled in the trees.Isaiah hit the runway hard, his massive claws skidding across the concrete before he regained his footing. He stood in the middle of the airstrip, panting heavily, thick red blood dripping from his shoulder wound onto the asphalt.The blue stripes on his flanks were pulsing with a furious, dark light. He threw his massive head back and let out a deafening roar of pure triumph. He had clipped the bird. Now, it was time to hunt.Isaiah didn't rush. He knew the jungle, and he knew his prey couldn't go far. He followed the heavy scent of burning aviation fuel and the metallic tang of exposed wiring.He pushed through the dense underbrush, moving with a slow, calculated menace. He was tracking them, his sensitive nostrils flaring with every step. He didn't just want to kill them anymore; he wanted them to understand the power of Asset 87.Up ahead, the jungle opened up into a scene of absolute devastation. The plane was wedged high up in the branches of a massive, ancient tree, its metal skin shredded and smoking.Isaiah stepped into the clearing, his heavy footsteps causing the mud to squish and churn. He looked up at the plane. He could hear the panicked, frantic whispers of the humans trapped inside.He didn't hesitate. He reared up on his hind legs, his massive, clawed hands reaching up to grasp the fuselage.With a display of overwhelming brute strength, Isaiah pulled.The plane groaned and shrieked as it was ripped from the branches. It crashed to the jungle floor with a violent, earth-shaking thud, splitting open like a ripe fruit.Isaiah lunged forward, his massive jaws tearing the cockpit door completely off its hinges, throwing it carelessly into the bushes. He reached inside with his long snout, his yellow eyes locking onto the terrified face of the pilot, Nash, who was desperately trying to unbuckle his harness.Isaiah clamped his jaws around the man's torso and yanked him violently out of the wreckage, ignoring the screams of the others. He tossed the screaming pilot into the air and swallowed him whole, the warm rush of protein fueling his rage.But before he could turn his attention back to the rest of the survivors, a familiar, terrifying scent flooded the clearing.It was rich, foul, and carried the unmistakable odor of old blood and rotting carrion. It was the scent of the apex predator Isaiah had run from months ago as a juvenile.Isaiah froze, his massive tail lashing out slowly behind him. He turned his head toward the dense tree line.A low, vibrating rumble rolled through the earth. The heavy foliage parted, and a massive, scaly head pushed through the ferns.It was the Tyrannosaurus rex.But it was no longer a juvenile. Time had passed for it as well. It was now a fully grown, massive bull Rex, standing at least eighteen feet tall and stretching over forty feet in length. Its body was a mountain of thick, pebbly, dark green muscle, covered in deep scars from a lifetime of brutal combat. Its boxy head was massive, a weapon designed to crush bone.The Rex stepped fully into the clearing, its yellow, forward-facing eyes locking directly onto Isaiah.It recognized him. It remembered the strange, blue-striped hybrid that had escaped its jaws months ago. And it was not about to let him escape again.The King of the Dinosaurs opened its massive maw, exposing a forest of banana-sized teeth, and let out a deafening, earth-shaking roar that rattled the very leaves on the trees.Isaiah didn't back down. The blue bioluminescent stripes on his flanks flared to a brilliant, angry glow, and the jagged scar on his sail flushed a deep, warning crimson. He was no longer a scared child. He was Asset 87, and this was his jungle now.Isaiah threw his massive head back and let out a counter-roar that was just as loud, just as terrifying, and just as full of murderous intent.The two titans charged.They collided in the center of the clearing with the force of two freight trains. The impact sent a shockwave through the mud. The Rex clamped its massive jaws onto Isaiah's neck, its bone-crushing teeth sinking deep into his thick skin.Isaiah let out a pained, furious scream, but he didn't falter. He used his massive, muscular arms—a weapon the Tyrannosaur lacked. He drove his foot-long, curved talons deep into the Rex's flank, shredding the green scales and drawing a torrent of thick, dark blood.The Rex roared in pain, its grip on Isaiah's neck loosening just enough.Isaiah seized the opportunity. He twisted his massive body, slamming his heavy torso into the Tyrannosaur's chest and forcing the giant predator to take a staggering step back.Isaiah didn't let up. He lunged forward, his long, narrow snout snapping shut on the Rex's snout, shaking his head violently from side to side to tear at the flesh.The Rex countered by using its massive weight, slamming its head into Isaiah's chest and sending him stumbling back into a banyan tree. The tree cracked and splintered under the immense weight.They circled each other in the mud, breathing heavily, blood dripping from both of them. They were evenly matched in size and power, but Isaiah had the ultimate advantage: his arms.The Rex charged again, its massive jaws open wide, aiming for a killing blow on Isaiah's throat.Isaiah timed it perfectly. Instead of backing away, he stepped into the charge.He ducked low, letting the Rex's massive jaws snap shut on empty air just above his head. Before the Tyrannosaur could recover its momentum, Isaiah lunged upward.He wrapped his massive, heavily muscled arms around the Rex's thick neck. His foot-long talons locked together behind the giant's skull, creating a vice-grip of pure biological steel.The Rex panicked. It let out a muffled, terrified growl, its small arms waving uselessly in the air as it tried to shake Isaiah off.But Isaiah wasn't letting go. He channeled all of his immense, multi-ton strength into his arms. He twisted his massive body violently to the side, using his hips and his heavy tail for leverage.CRACK.A sound like a massive tree trunk snapping echoed through the clearing.The Tyrannosaurus rex's neck vertebrae shattered instantly under the overwhelming torque. The giant's yellow eyes rolled back into its head, its body going completely limp.Isaiah let go of the carcass. The King of the Dinosaurs crashed heavily to the muddy jungle floor with a dull, wet thud, dead before it even hit the ground.Isaiah stood over the fallen king, his chest heaving, his blue stripes pulsing with a dark, triumphant glow. He had avenged his past cowardice. He had defeated the ultimate predator.He threw his massive head back and let out a roar of absolute victory that echoed across the entirety of Isla Sorna. He was Asset 87. And the island belonged to him.
