Nimbus - Aging Quest - Crossing Paths

A harsh blizzard had hit the mountains. Lost near the peaks was absolutely the last situation Nimbus wanted to be in, but there he was. Food was scarce this time of year and he had taken the chance to scale the mountain in search of food, despite feeling the minute changes in the atmosphere that hinted at an approaching blizzard. Up here, he did manage to bring down a moose as the snow started to get dangerously heavy. He rushed to gullet down most of the carcass. Knowing he was cutting it far too close, he abandoned his meal with quite a bit of meat left on it. Just parts he would have to pay more attention to in order to fully strip it, mostly the scraps clinging to bones or the less fleshy parts. Time he didn’t have right then. He managed to tear off a front leg and decided to take it with him; it was the meatiest part that he hadn’t already eaten and that he could pull from the body. That was how he found himself wandering through the mountains in a blizzard so thick he could barely see his own tail. At this point, he wasn’t sure if he was even heading down the mountains. All he really knew was that he had to keep moving.

His thick white feathers usually kept him relatively warm even at these elevations, but he could feel the cold seeping in as snow piled upon his back, his body heat melting it so the cold water would drip to his skin. Eventually, he found himself at the edge of a pine forest. Was it the same one he passed through to get here? He had no idea. But he decided to take the chance. He could barely make out where the trees were. Branches snagged in his feathers as he brushed too close to them. He even crashed into multiple trees. The dense forests of the island weren’t so accommodating for a creature as large as an Acrocanthosaurus. But at least the foliage kept some of the biting winds off of his body. By now, he had been out in the storm for at least an hour. He was incredibly cold, especially his scaly legs as they sank several feet into the snow with each strenuous step. His strength was fading fast. His blue eyes were half-closed as he fought through the snow. At least, until the ground disappeared beneath him.

He felt rocks beneath the snow as he fell, tumbling down the side of a sloped rocky wall before landing in the dirt. His head slammed onto a rock. Nimbus lay there for a few minutes, his head ringing, half-buried in the freezing cold snow. He felt like he was drifting in and out of sleep. At one point, he opened his eyes to see a small crested dinosaur, a Cryolophosaurus, black with a white face, staring down at him. He seemed to accept that he had simply died, and this small creature was the reaper coming to collect his soul. He slowly blinked again. This time, the stranger no longer stood over him, but was walking away with a moose leg… His food. With a growl and some great effort, Nimbus stood, shifting the heavy blanket of snow that covered him. He stumbled towards the thief, nearly falling over as he did so. The howling winds covered the sound of Nimbus’ heavy steps, and it seemed the stranger assumed Nimbus wasn’t getting up anytime soon. Even if they had looked back, they probably wouldn’t have been able to see the white-feathered Acrocanthosaurus stalking them. In comparison, it was far easier for Nimbus to see the dark figure as they pushed through the snow. Nimbus followed the Cryolophosaurus along the cliff wall he fell from, until he suddenly lost sight of them. He narrowed his eyes as he cautiously approached the point he last saw the thief at.

However, Nimbus instead found the entrance to a cave. He nearly walked past it, a shock rushing through his body when he noticed it. The entrance was small and narrow, yet big enough for him to feel he could try squeezing inside. At this point, he had completely forgotten the thief and his lost snack. He crouched and lowered his head into the cave entrance. It seemed to bend and widen slightly further back. The icy rocks scraped his skin as he awkwardly shuffled into the cave. His crouched stance had him bobbing his head as he struggled to maintain his balance, occasionally banging his head on the cave roof. In the end, Nimbus had managed to squeeze into the cave, making it into that slightly wider area. As his head reached the bend, he was greeted with a loud hiss that echoed off the walls.

In the corner of the cave, stood the Cryolophosaurus thief. Out of the harsh blizzard, Nimbus could smell this was a male; he could see almost every bone in this male’s body, and the bright green stripes on his tail, which he lashed about as a threat display. The stranger was standing over the moose leg, his muzzle stained with blood as he had wasted no time in feasting upon it.
“I think you need that more than me,” Nimbus chuckled, his blue eyes focused on the Cryolophosaurus’ prominent ribs.
The large Acrocanthosaurus stepped forwards, preparing to give himself some room to maneuver a turn. However, the hungry thief seemed to perceive this as an approach towards him. In reaction, the small male lunged at Nimbus, his jaws clamping down on Nimbus’ lower leg. With a roar, Nimbus shook his foot, throwing the Cryolophosaurus into the wall with a sickening thud. The cave was silent as Nimbus held his breath, listening to the howling wind outside. Nimbus couldn’t actually see the poor creature, having landed somewhere behind his legs. He carefully patted his large feet around the cave, checking to make sure he wouldn’t stand on the Cryolophosaurus as he tried to turn around. He managed a turn in the widened passage at the end of the cave. Against the cave wall, lay the Cryolophosaurus, whimpering softly between heavy breaths.

“I’m sorry,” Nimbus whispered as he lowered his black-crested head to check he hadn’t hurt the Cryolophosaurus too badly.
Without even lifting his head, the small male hissed weakly, his narrow pupils staring at the white Acrocanthosaurus in fear.
“I promise I’m not going to hurt you,” Nimbus spoke softly.
He reached one leg backwards to push the remaining scraps of reindeer leg forwards with his toes. Once it was underneath his body, he was able to shove it towards the now whimpering stranger with the bottom of his feet. Nimbus carefully stepped over the Cryolophosaurus, exited the cave and turned around to head back inside. He laid down to rest about five feet away, with his head turned away from the smaller dinosaur to the right; as much as the narrow passage allowed, at least. His large, feathered body sheltered the scrawny Cryolophosaurus from the blizzard that was still raging outside. Nimbus watched over the other male for a while, hoping he would at least lift his head at some point.

He wasn’t sure when he had fallen asleep, but Nimbus was given a rude awakening by something cold under his arms. His head jolted upwards and then quickly looked down, rolling his whole body to the right slightly. Curled up alongside him, was the shivering, black Cryolophosaurus. Nimbus shuffled his body to bury the little dinosaur deeper into his feathers, avoiding poking himself on the spikes along his spine. Using his snout, Nimbus uncurled the little dinosaur’s green-striped tail so it would fit snug beneath his feathers. Nimbus glanced over his shoulder to see the storm was still yet to end.