A quick note here: For the sake of this story, "dinosaur milk" is a headcanon modification, a result of Dr. Wu's genetic engineering to inhibit natural reproduction.
…
The driver was steady, taking his time with the delivery.
But while the driver wasn't in a hurry, Carlo certainly was. If he had any strength left in his body, he'd have stood up and let out a high-pitched bellow to speed things along.
After what felt like either two and a half years or two and a half minutes, the truck finally lurched to a halt. Following a few more bumps, Carlo felt himself being lowered onto the ground.
Only after the engine's roar faded into the distance did Carlo shakily push himself up. Despite this being his first time standing, his coordination was surprisingly high. If he weren't so weak from hunger, he would have tried a light jog just to test his legs.
Lifting his head, he carefully surveyed his surroundings. He was in a redwood forest, surrounded by massive, ancient trunks. One tree nearby had been snapped midway up, clearly the work of humans. High above, a section of opaque glass was embedded into the suspended logs, likely a viewing gallery for tourists.
These guys... they probably wouldn't drop me too far from my parents, Carlo thought.
After a moment's consideration, he decided to use his sense of smell to track them down.
He tilted his small head, the skin on the sides of his snout twitching rhythmically.
The scent of damp earth, the fragrance of the trees... and then, a familiar musk. It wafted through the other smells, faint but undeniable, marking this territory as occupied.
There! That's it! Carlo felt a surge of joy. This was the scent he had caught right after hatching, though back then it had been so overpowering it drowned out everything else.
Focusing entirely on that scent, Carlo began trekking toward the source, occasionally letting out a feeble, raspy growl.
Ten seconds after one of his calls, a response echoed through the woods. The sound was low and resonant, yet strangely gentle, as if the caller were afraid of startling him. It was deep enough that it was hard to tell exactly how far away it originated.
Exchanging calls every so often, Carlo pushed deeper into the brush toward the strengthening scent.
Soon, the ground began to vibrate. The earth itself was trembling, announcing the arrival of the forest's master.
She was here.
A Giganotosaurus, thirteen meters long and roughly four and a half meters tall, stepped out from behind a massive redwood. Despite her immense size, she had been perfectly camouflaged in the shadows of the grove. If she hadn't revealed herself, Carlo wouldn't have known she was so close.
She stood there, towering over him, looking down into Carlo's eyes. Her previous urgency was replaced by a flash of bewilderment. Clearly, she couldn't wrap her head around why her newborn hatchling was this huge. The genetic memory didn't mention anything about this!
For no reason at all, Carlo felt a pang of nerves. He suddenly understood why the tourist areas used privacy glass. No one wants to lock eyes with a predator, especially an apex killer from 97 million years ago. Even just standing there in a standoff felt like an ordeal.
The silence didn't last long. The adult Giga broke the tension first. She leaned down, sniffing Carlo's scent. Once she confirmed he was indeed her offspring, she let out a huff of relief.
Carlo relaxed as well. The intensity of meeting his mother's gaze had been so high he'd temporarily forgotten his hunger.
The next moment, his feet left the ground. His mother gently picked him up in her jaws and began a brisk trot toward the nest. Whether it was the lingering effects of the tranquilizers or just her gait, Carlo felt her swaying unsteadily, as if she might trip at any second.
About five minutes later, Carlo finally got his wish: his first meal. Dinosaur milk didn't exactly taste as good as cow's milk, but to the starving Carlo, it was the finest vintage on earth.
Once back at the nest, his mother lay down, allowing her child to nurse. However, it wasn't long before she felt something was wrong.
This kid was eating way too fast. She felt her supply dwindling rapidly. Although her tolerance for Carlo was exceptionally high because he was the sole survivor of the clutch, maternal instinct took over. For his own safety, she shifted her weight and moved into a prone position, cutting him off to prevent him from overeating and potentially harming himself.
Carlo, caught off guard by the sudden move, stood to the side looking dazed. Hey, what gives? I'm not full yet!
Suddenly, branches nearby began to snap and rustle. Carlo turned toward the noise, but his vision was immediately blocked by a massive foot.
His mother stood in front of him, staring warily at the shifting foliage.
A moment later, a low, garbled rumble came from the trees. Carlo watched his mother visibly relax. She let out a soft call in return and settled back into her prone position.
With a final crack, another Giganotosaurus emerged from the forest, carrying a goat in his mouth.
Is that Dad? Carlo thought, letting out a little chirp toward the newcomer. The male ignored him at first, dropping the goat next to the mother. Then, he leaned over and nudged Carlo's small head with his massive snout before collapsing nearby to sleep off the remaining sedative.
Must be Dad, then.
Seeing his parents both succumb to their post-tranquilizer exhaustion, Carlo began to examine his surroundings.
Their nest was located by a small lake, shielded by a ring of thickets, with the redwood forest forming a secondary perimeter. He also spotted several camouflaged cameras hidden among the trees.
He turned his gaze back to his parents. He noticed they looked nothing like the Giganotosaurus from his memories of Jurassic World Dominion; they looked more like the scientific reconstructions from about a decade ago.
So... what do I look like?
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, a translucent deep-blue panel flickered into existence before his eyes. Startled, he tried to jump back, but his body wasn't quite ready for such a feat, resulting in a clumsy, panicked stumble.
[Name: Carlo]
[Family: Giganotosaurus carolinii]
[Available Points: 10 (Grayed Out)]
[Health: 11451.4 / 80960 (The classic ARK experience: born at low health)]
[Stamina: 750 / 750]
[Oxygen: 510 / 510]
[Food: 4890.5 / 10600]
[Weight: 0 / 898]
[Melee Damage: 180%]
Carlo eventually calmed down and studied the panel with curiosity. He didn't know what it was, but his brain felt a rush of excitement, urging him to test it out.
Unfortunately, no matter how much he poked at it, nothing happened. The ten points seemed locked until he reached adulthood. On the bright side, even though he was just a hatchling, his Experience Points were steadily ticking upward.
Wait... it looks like I can open the Family tab.
The panel shifted. His personal information collapsed into his name, and a line extended from his name box, branching out to connect to two other names.
[Mother: Caroline]
[Father: "Father"]
Carlo mentally poked fun at his father's lack of a creative name, then tried to open their panels. This time he succeeded.
[Name: Caroline]
[Family: Giganotosaurus carolinii]
[Level: 150]
[Available Points: 54]
[Health: 1660 / 1660]
[Stamina: 750 / 750]
[Oxygen: 160 / 160]
[Food: 4240 / 4240]
[Weight: 0 / 1000]
[Melee Damage: 100%]
…
[Name: Father]
[Family: Giganotosaurus carolinii]
[Level: 150]
[Available Points: 41]
[Health: 1760 / 1760]
[Stamina: 880 / 880]
[Oxygen: 150 / 150]
[Food: 3067.9 / 4240]
[Weight: 0 / 800]
[Melee Damage: 97%]
Wait, what? Are you guys actually my parents?!
Carlo was hit with a wave of shock, confusion, and doubt. Why were his stats so much higher than his parents'? Especially that Health bar! And why was their melee damage so low?
Bro, is it possible they're just normal Giganotosauruses?
Carlo quickly came up with a theory: he was a "true" dinosaur (the ARK version), while his parents were the Jurassic World versions mixed with modern DNA. His superiority was only natural.
Yeah, that must be it. That's what that smart-looking human said.
Glancing at his sleeping parents, Carlo felt a bit bored. He waddled over to the lakeshore to look at his reflection.
Hmm... so I look like this? Am I really their biological kid? Compared to his parents, his head-to-body ratio was slightly smaller. Paired with his sleek, elongated frame, he looked less like a wild beast and more elegan, almost like a young noble from an aristocratic family.
After admiring himself for a while longer, Carlo went back to pester his mother. He planned to beg for a little more milk. Even though he wasn't starving anymore, who could say no to a little more dino-milk?