Tiny-Stego Stampede Read online

  Vicky turned around, and Bruno treated her to the biggest lick I’d ever seen. All the way from her belly button to the top of her detective’s hat. Vicky didn’t say a word. She just stared up at Bruno with wide eyes, then got all woozy and fainted right into my arms.

  “Well, Bruno. Meet Vicky. She’s usually a little more talkative than this,” I said. Bruno licked her again.

  I tapped on my Invisible Communicator, turning it back on to catch up with Lin.

  “Hey, Lin. How are things going?” I asked.

  “Not good! This herd is out of control! You better not be messing around. I need your help!” Lin shouted.

  “I am helping. You just can’t tell yet. Do you see ChuChu?” I asked.

  “I think I see her, but it’s hard to keep track. All these stegos look the same, and they’re kicking up a lot of dust,” Lin said.

  “Okay. I’m bringing help now. Just keep following the stampede,” I said.

  Bruno looked at me funny, and I swear I could read his mind. “Don’t look at me like that. Lin has enough on her mind. I’ll tell her about Vicky later, but for now, let’s go find that stampede,” I said. Bruno chuffed a little bark in agreement. “I hope she can sleep through this. It might be better for us all.”

  Bruno sat down, and I leaned Vicky up against him. He sniffed at her and smiled.

  “Okay, you two wait here. I’ll be back in a jiffy,” I said.

  I sprinted to the playpen gate, then pried it open to release the twins. “Come on, guys, let’s go find a stampede!” I said, and they rushed out the open gate so fast they nearly knocked me over. The twins danced around me, jumping up and down excitedly as they gnashed their sharp teeth together.

  “Okay. Follow me,” I said, then sprinted back to Bruno and Vicky. She was still pretty woozy when I returned, but she was starting to recover. I knelt down right next to her and tapped on her cheek.

  “Vicky? Can you hear me?” I asked. She smiled, which was a nice change considering the last time she looked at me she wanted to tear me to shreds.

  “Oh, hi, Danny. How strange to see you here. I was having a dream that there was this huge dinosaur guy with three horns and he licked me. It was kind of warm, but mostly just gross,” she said.

  “Well, Vicky. I hope you’re ready to hear this, because that wasn’t a dream. He was real,” I said. I pointed over my shoulder to where the twins were wrestling and growling behind us. “And so are they.”

  Vicky looked at the twins, and for a second, I thought she was going to pass out again. Then she focused and cleared her head, and the normal Vicky returned.

  “We’re still in the Micro-thingy place, aren’t we?” she said, the little smile gone from her face.

  “Yes. We are. And there are dinosaurs, Microsaurs actually, everywhere. If you can get past the fact that we’re part of the food chain, then this place can be pretty cool,” I said.

  Vicky swallowed and thought about it for a bit.

  “Listen, Vicky. I need your help. I know this is all a bit too much, but Lin is in big trouble and her little sister, ChuChu, well, she’s in a whole lot more trouble. If you want, you can just wait inside that building over there.” I pointed to the Fruity Stars Lab 3.0. “It’s a nice place for you to relax, and as long as you promise not to touch any of the equipment, it is totally safe.

  “Or you can come along with me and help me rescue Lin’s baby sister. There’s a good chance we could get stampeded by a herd of out-of-control stegosauri. We might get lost in the swamp or get pricked by a bunch of cacti. There’s a pack of bitty oviraptors around here somewhere that are known to chase anything that moves. And I already warned you about the pterodactyls, remember?” I said.

  “The flying alligators?” Vicky asked.

  “That’s right. The flying alligators,” I said.

  “We need to make a decision now. We need to really hurry. So, what’s it going to be? Stay in that nice, colorful building and wait for me to return, or risk your life trying to rescue Lin and her baby sister?” I said.

  Vicky thought about it for a few seconds, then surprised me with her answer. She stood up, dusted off her backside, then looked me in the eye. “Let’s go rescue Lin’s sister. If Lin gets rescued, too, that’s fine by me. But I am not waiting all by myself in that huge toy building while you have all the fun,” she said.

  “Well. Okay. I hope you can hold on tight, because it’s going to get a little bumpy,” I said.

  I nudged Bruno to stand up, then climbed on his back. I held out a hand for Vicky. “Come on. You’re riding with me,” I said, and I saw something on Vicky’s face that I didn’t expect. I could tell by the look in her eye that Vicky was enjoying herself. Vicky was ready for an adventure.

  Vicky climbed up and sat behind me. “Hold on tight,” I said, and she wrapped her arms around my waist. “Any questions before we take off?”

  “Oh yeah. I have a lot of questions, but maybe just one before we go.” She was looking over at the twins, who had noticed we were about to leave. “Are those dinosaurs wearing puppy ears?”

  “Yup. It’s a long story. I’ll tell you on the way,” I said. Then I nudged Bruno with the heels of my feet. “Come on, boy, let’s go find the stego stampede.”

  CHAPTER 11

  SMASH AND DASH!

  I wasn’t really sure where Lin, ChuChu, and the herd were at the moment, but before I could worry about them, I had to get check out the new PIBB fence I had installed. I knew exactly where that was, so I pointed Bruno in the right direction and we were off.

  For the second time that day, I was riding double on Bruno. He smashed through the little trees in his path as we bounced along, and before we’d made it halfway, it was obvious that Vicky was NOT enjoying the whole experience. It was mostly obvious because she wouldn’t stop complaining about it.

  “Oh my goodness. Does this dinosaur do anything but smash things?” Vicky asked. She was holding on tight around my waist, but she kept sliding around as we bumped along.

  “He crushes things, too,” I said, half smiling to myself.

  “Well, maybe you could try to drive him…” She paused as Bruno demolished a mushroom the size of a couch. “… around something once in a while. I think this is as much your fault as his.”

  I didn’t respond. Honestly, I didn’t have time to argue about how to drive Bruno. The longer it was taking me to help find ChuChu, the more I worried. Whether or not Bruno trampled down an old stick or two was not something I cared about at the moment.

  The twins ran alongside us, their doggie ears flapping, and their powerful jaws clomping shut from time to time. They had grown so much since they hatched that they were almost as tall as Bruno now. Pizza dodged a stump that Bruno demolished, jumping so close to us that I could smell his pizza breath. Vicky squeaked, and her grip loosened a little, which made her slip down off Bruno’s big rump and get caught in the curve of his tail.

  “Stop! Danny! I’m going to fall off and die right here. Nobody will ever see me again! It’s a near tragedy!”

  Stopping was not part of the plan, but I did have time to reach back and give her a hand. I pulled her up next to me. “Hold on tighter this time,” I said.

  “Tighter? If I hold any tighter I’m going to—” Bruno jumped over a rock and slammed back down to the ground with a thud. “Ugh! What was I saying?” Vicky asked.

  “I’m not sure, but hold on. This could get a little messy,” I said as I steered Bruno toward a little waterfall. In between us and the stream was a gooey bank of soupy-looking mud. The twins entered first. The mud was so deep they were almost covered up to their tiny arms.

  “No. NO. NOOOO! I’m wearing my best pink Brittany Belle Backcountry Bonanza Limited Edition shoes. They cannot get wet,” Vicky said seconds before Bruno took a huge leap into the air.

  Now, there is no doubt that Bruno is an excellent smasher and crusher. But I know from experience that his favorite activity is splashing. Especially if the splashing in
cludes soupy, dark brown, kind of smelly mud.

  The twins scampered out of the way, jumping into the stream that flowed from the waterfall, as Bruno came down like a cannonball into the muck. I would have to give it a full ten out of ten on the jumping-splashing scale, because just about every inch of us was coated in a thick frosting of mud. I couldn’t help but smile and shout out a big “ALL RIGHT!” because it was by far Bruno’s best kerplunk!

  “My Sparkle Diva Spring Collection vest! I have to send it to Paris to have it cleaned! It’s practically RUINED,” Vicky shouted through a mouthful of mud.

  Bruno sloshed through the mud, splashed through the stream, then ran us through a waterfall car wash. The twins were waiting for us on the other side of the creek, panting and dripping with muddy water. They didn’t look bored anymore; in fact, they looked as happy as I’ve ever seen them. I smiled, then turned back to look at Vicky before we took off again.

  “That wasn’t so bad, was it?” I asked.

  She was so mad I think I saw some steam coming out of her ears and nostrils. “I am NEVER coming here again. EVER!”

  “Well, suit yourself,” I said, “but our adventure isn’t over yet. You better hang on again.”

  Vicky squeezed me so tight I could barely breathe as Bruno chased the twins up a large grassy hill. The tops of the PIBB fence appeared as we got closer, and I was surprised—and a little shocked—to see how big the new stegosaurus corral looked.

  “Look, Vicky,” I said, pointing to the fence. “Remember that?”

  “It’s huge,” she said.

  “Actually, it is normal-sized. We’re small,” I said. I was really proud of how great the fence looked now that I was seeing it while tiny. It was multicolored, every color except red for obvious Bruno reasons. There were small gaps between the bricks, much too small for the tiniest of stegosauri to squeeze through, but just right for someone my size to peek through and get a good look.

  Bruno took us to the gate, where the twins were waiting for us as they rolled around in the tall prairie grass, drying themselves off. The gate was twice the size of a garage door, and it looked nice and sturdy.

  “All right, Vicky. Let’s open the gate,” I said as I climbed down from Bruno.

  “All we do is work in this place. I need a break,” she said. She slid off Bruno and tumbled to the ground with a thump. “You open the gate. I’ll watch.”

  I rolled my eyes as I walked toward the gate. “Okay, Bruno. I guess it is up to me and you,” I said. Bruno didn’t hesitate. He followed me to the gate, and the two of us swung the door wide open.

  After thanking my big, lovable smash-o-saurus, I walked back toward Vicky while I checked the GPS on my phone. She was still lying on her back in the grass, moaning and mumbling to herself.

  “It looks like Lin and the stego stampede are pretty close. It’s time to get the T. rexes into action,” I said.

  “Close to what?” Vicky said.

  A low grumbling bellowed from over the hill. It shook the ground all around us, and Vicky sat up.

  “Close to that,” I said.

  “What was it?” Lin asked.

  “It’s not a what. It’s a who. Wilson, to be exact. The rarest and largest Microsaur in the Microterium. Perhaps in the world,” I explained as I climbed back on Bruno. I whistled for the twins. Pizza and Cornelia ran around Bruno, ready to put their new skills to the test. “Come on. Climb on. We have to hurry.”

  Vicky looked up at me and frowned. “If you think I’m getting on that dinosaur again, you’re crazy. I’m waiting right here,” Vicky said.

  “Fine. But when the stampede starts heading this way, make sure to stay out of their way. I wouldn’t want your Sparkle Diva Summer Collection vest to get smashed.” I nudged Bruno, and he started to run toward Lin and ChuChu.

  “It’s the Sparkle Diva SPRING Collection vest. I can’t believe you can’t tell the difference,” Vicky shouted as we bounded down the hill.

  “Sorry. My bad. Watch out for flying alligators,” I shouted back.

  CHAPTER 12

  GET ’EM ON UP!

  As Bruno and I ran toward the stampede, I clicked the SpyZoom Invisible Communicator in my ear to get in touch with Lin.

  “Hey, Lin. Are you there?” I asked.

  “Of course I’m here. Where have you been?” Lin said. I could tell she was close to the herd of stegosauri because I could hear them mooing in the background.

  “It’s a long story. I’ll catch you up later. Can you see ChuChu?” I asked.

  “I’ve seen her a few times, but it’s hard to keep track of her in the mess of stegos. They all look the same,” she said. “I need your help, Danny. And I need it in a hurry.”

  “On my way,” I promised, which was totally true.

  Bruno, Pizza, Cornelia, and I reached the top of a rock-covered hill and looked down in a deep valley. Wilson, the gigantic patagotitan down below us, was surrounded by the herd. A dust cloud floated around them, and following along close behind was Zip-Zap with Lin on his back.

  “All right, girl,” I said to Cornelia, who was sitting right next to Bruno, ready for action. “It’s time to shine.

  “Lin. Holler for Cornelia. I’m going to send her your way,” I said.

  “Really? Where are you?” she said.

  “Look up,” I said as I waved. “We’re just up the hill to your right.”

  “YAAAHOOOO!” Lin shouted, and it buzzed in my ear. “Come, Cornelia! Come help me, girl!”

  Cornelia looked up at me, waiting for final instructions. “Go on, girl. Get ’em on up!” I said in my best cowboy voice.

  Cornelia shot down the hill so fast she looked like a blur. She yipped and growled her happiest sounds as she burst toward Lin and Zip-Zap.

  “What are you guys going to do?” Lin asked.

  “Pizza and I are going to run to the front of the herd and see if we can turn them around. You guys are heading the wrong way, and I have a nice big fence ready for you behind this hill,” I said.

  “Holy Micro-oly! Cornelia is FAST!” Lin said. “She’s almost here!”

  “Come on, Pizza. Let’s go bring this herd home,” I said to Pizza, who looked like he was ready to burst he was so excited.

  “Get ’em on up, boy!” I said, then pointed to the front of the herd. Pizza ran down the hill even faster than his sister, Cornelia. Bruno and I followed along, but he was growling and snapping at the herd before we were even halfway down the hill.

  The stegosauri didn’t pay a lot of attention to Pizza at first, but it didn’t take long for him to convince them that he was serious. All it took was one serious ROAR for them to understand that the young Tyrannosaurus rex meant business. But while Pizza looked like he was having a blast, he wasn’t doing anything to control the herd. In fact, if anything, he was making them run faster in the wrong direction.

  “How is Cornelia doing?” I asked Lin.

  “Um, she’s having a lot of fun, but there’s a problem,” Lin said.

  “She’s pushing the herd faster,” I said.

  “How did you know?”

  “Because Pizza is doing the same thing. We need to make a new plan,” I said.

  “I think I see ChuChu. She’s right in the middle of the pack. But I can’t get to her,” Lin said.

  “We need to get them behind the fence first. It should be easy to grab her then,” I said.

  “Okay. You stay up front with the herd. We’ll be right there,” Lin said. “I have an idea. Come on, Corney. Follow me!”

  While we waited for Zip-Zap, Lin, and Cornelia to join us, Bruno, Pizza, and I kept trying to slow down the herd, but it was no use. Bruno nudged at passing stegos, but they were too big to budge. I shouted at the top of my voice, but with all the rumbling, they couldn’t even hear me. Pizza was better at getting their attention, but the tiny carnivore was only scaring them into running faster.

  “We’re almost there, Danny. I can see a Bruno-shaped blur through the dust,” she said. �
��Start running ahead of the herd. It’s all part of my plan, and you know we’re faster than you. We’ll catch up for sure.”

  “Pizza! Follow me,” I said, not bothering to ask Lin about her plan. When it came to making up crazy action plans, there was nobody on earth as great as Lin. Not even me. Not even close.

  Pizza followed Bruno as we started to pull away from the stampede. I didn’t realize how loud it was running with the stegos until we had pulled away a little bit. We kept running along, but I could tell Bruno was starting to get really, REALLY tired. But in no time at all, Zip-Zap and Lin caught up to us and she let me know the first step of her new plan.

  “Follow me,” Lin shouted as she turned Zip-Zap sharply to the left. I turned Bruno, and the twins followed us as we ran away from the herd. I looked to my right as the herd kept going, running around a big swooping turn that looked like it would head back our way soon.

  Lin was pulling away from Bruno and me, and I saw her jump from his back and land in a big flower bush up ahead on the big looping trail. She started plucking large orange blossoms from the bush. By the time we arrived at the flower plant, Lin had plucked about fifteen of the big blossoms and tossed them to the ground.

  I jumped off Bruno’s back as we slipped behind the flower bush with Lin. Pizza and Cornelia joined us, panting and smiling so big I thought they were going to explode with joy.

  “Okay. What’s the plan?” I asked Lin. She had pulled one of the flowers on over her hat and was stuffing her arms inside another.

  “Easy. We’re going to surprise the stego stampede,” she said. She punched her arm inside another flower blossom, then waved her arms around and shouted.

  I didn’t mean to, but a little laugh snuck out from deep inside me. “Lin, this might be the strangest idea you’ve ever had,” I said.

  “Right? I know! Isn’t it perfect?” Lin said as she stepped into a blossom, making her left foot look like one of the big orange cones Mr. Albertson, the school janitor, uses to let you know the floor is wet.