After being exiled, Snock had chosen to take the same direction it had always followed: the west. Each day he followed the movement of the sun and went to the point where it was setting. Not that he had many alternatives: by going west he would have been back among humans and it was the last thing he wanted.

During the journey he had mainly fed on small and slow mammals and some synapsids. It was hard to return to normal life: he lacked the simple meals and the safe refuge that the herd provided. But they were no longer available to him, so he had to make do.

The nightmares had returned to haunt him. By now he was terrified of falling asleep, both because he was afraid that something would attack him in his sleep, and because sleeping brought to light memories that he did not want to see again. Now a new nightmare had joined the others: the moment when he was kicked out of the pack, the only real family he had ever had. Sobek's fiery gaze and his voice screaming at him how silly and futile he was kept popping up in his dreams, causing him to wake up with a start.

This was not good for his psyche. Several times he found himself having outbursts of anger that he couldn't control. Once he had demolished an entire tree with his headbuttons. And sadly being alone didn't help: the oppressive silence that enveloped him only made it easier to hear the agonizing screams of his sick mind.

Snock soon discovered that he was no longer able to be alone. Before joining the pack he had never had anyone and had always relied only on himself. But then he had joined the pack and liked it. Now he was missing that life and he wanted it back, and to make matters worse he knew very well he couldn't blame anyone but himself for losing it.

By now he was passing from episodes of uncontrolled anger to others of deep depression. It happened that he did not eat for days and that he dragged himself aimlessly moved only by instinct. Then he would suddenly go mad and attack anything that moved, even a fern tossed by the wind, and would not stop until his strength left him or his mouth was filled with the blood of some of his victim. Once, even his depression had reached such a level that without realizing it he had dragged himself to a raging river to throw himself into the rushing current, and only the squeak of a mouse had brought him back to reality at the last moment. he had prevented the fateful gesture from being made.

Very often he had wondered if he shouldn't go back. Maybe if he was truly repentant Sobek would be willing to forgive him. However, he knew that his was just a silly fantasy. No pack leader would allow anyone who challenged his authority to rejoin the pack. Snock had committed the worst of faults, and he could be said to be lucky that Sobek hadn't simply killed him. Though perhaps death would have been preferable.

As the giganotosaurus trudged on his way lost in such thoughts, a loud creak came from behind him. In an instant, his breathing tripled and his heartbeat skyrocketed. Instinct immediately took over and the dinosaur spun around ready to face his opponent tooth and nail.

But to his surprise, what stood before him was a familiar face. "Buck?" he exclaimed recognizing him by the moon on his forehead.

The tyrannosaurus stepped forward. His wasn't an aggressive intent, but Snock took a step back anyway. "Why are you here?" he asked him. "Do you want to kill me? Do you intend to completely wash away the shame from your pack leader?"

The giganotosaurus wasn't thinking clearly. If he did, he would quickly realize that if Buck wanted to kill him it would take him very little to do so, since he could count on [Ambush]. Snock wouldn't even hear him coming. But the giganotosaurus was not in a position to think correctly, and only fear and self-preservation had made their way into his brain.

"I'm not here to hurt you" Buck replied. "I'm here because the pack leader wants me to take you back"

It took Snock a few seconds to digest the t-rex's words, and when he did he rolled his eyes. "What?" he exclaimed convinced that he had misunderstood. "Why on earth would the pack leader want to see an exile again?"

"He didn't tell me. He just ordered me to take you back to him" Buck said, then bared his teeth. "Will you come with me with your own will, or will I have to force you?"

The giganotosaurus swallowed at the threat of the tyrannosaurus. He knew that in a possible fight he would have no hope: Buck could count on the powers granted him by Sobek. Conversely, Snock was a common dinosaur now. Furthermore, it was likely that Buck had not come alone: the assault commander would not have moved without an adequate escort. Surely they were stationed around there somewhere, ready to intervene in case of need.

Snock considered it. Buck would have no problem taking him away if he refused. He couldn't escape, much less he could win in a fight. One way or another he would have been brought before Sobek. Which, moreover, what did he want from him? What was the use of an outcast?

"Okay, I'll come" he finally chose. Fuck, even if Sobek had turned him back just to kill him definitively, at least he would have died in the pack, as he had wanted from the beginning.

Buck nodded. "Wise decision"

*******

Five days passed quickly. On the evening of the sixth day Sobek was finally able to bring [Teleportartion] to level 1/5.

'Nearly twenty days of incessant eating, just to improve a single level of one skill... what a shit life' the spinosaurus grumbled in his mind. Well, at least now he could teleport. He wasted no time and gave it a try, concentrating and imagining in his mind a clearing in which he had slept when he was still Spinosaurus ingens.

He felt a tingle, and a second later he found himself surrounded by thick trees. Sobek was triumphant: [Teleportation] worked! For a moment he thought he had something wrong, since the clearing seemed much smaller than he remembered, then he realized that it was he who had grown exponentially during all that time.

He concentrated again and went back to the warehouse in Cartago, all in a split second. Sobek growled satisfied: that was a useful skill! If he had had it long ago, he wouldn't have needed to steal an entire ship to take away the dinosaurs from the zoo!

He decided to give it a try: he grabbed a large metal rod with his mouth and teleported. As he imagined, the auction teleported with him! He could also carry things, and perhaps even living beings! That skill was a marvel!

He immediately did a test: using the images taken from the memories of the pterosaurs he teleported along the coast and then on the continent Latissa. He had been right: even if the range was still limited he could already travel the distance!

He hastened to inform Monica of that result, which she was just waiting for her consent to leave. Using the mind-sharing skill of [Contract] he explained how to use the skill and sent her pictures of some places he had seen thanks to the memories of the pterosaurs. Thus the brachiosaurus could finally begin its exploration. Another piece had gone in his place, and soon another would follow.

Two days later what he was waiting for arrived: Buck appeared in front of him and announced: "Pack leader, I have brought the exile as you ordered me"

Sobek smiled sinisterly. "Good. Let him in"

Buck obeyed and stepped aside to allow Snock to enter the warehouse. The giganotosaurus looked uncomfortable, and even surprised to see Sobek's new form. The spinosaurus noticed that he had lost weight and had some injuries that seemed self-induced: certainly the removal from the herd hadn't done his already clouded mind any good, he reflected.

"You must be wondering why I wanted you to come back" Sobek began.

Snork nodded. "Why did you want to see this exile again?" he asked him.

"Very simple. I want to give you the chance to do good and save our brothers, as well as to receive my forgiveness" Sobek replied. "Do you want to be part of the pack again?"

The giganotosaurus heart did a somersault. He had only imagined that conversation in his most unlikely dreams. Was this really happening? Did he have a chance to return? "I don't want anything else" he admitted. "But why? Why me?"

"Because you are directly involved, which makes you the ideal candidate for the task I intend to give you" Sobek explained. "I'll try to be more explicit. Our brothers are held captive by humans, as you already know, but not by humans themselves. Most are kept in so-called 'legal lifestock and zoo' and are the ones that humans are returning to us thanks to the peace accords. However, a small part of our brothers is instead held captive by the 'black market', which will not respect the agreements, and unfortunately good humans will hardly be able to free the imprisoned dinosaurs. To make you understand, the black market is the same one you come from"

Sobek had thought about it for a long, long time. Governments seemed intent on abiding by the peace accords, but governments could only get their hands on legally bred dinosaurs. For those used illegally for fighting, or for sport hunting, or for many other reasons, governments could very little, since such activities were under the control of the black market which knew well to hide its business.

Sobek was unwilling to abandon those dinosaurs. He wanted to free them all and they would all be released. And Snock, who had a deep hatred for those people and knew how to move in the industry, was perfect for that job.

The giganotosaurus seemed to be following his line of thinking. "What do you want me to do?" he asked him with a serious look.

"Simple. You will have to form a team, made up of fast, strong, agile and extremely aggressive dinosaurs. After that you will collaborate with Rambo; you'll have to tell him everything you know about that environment, so Rambo and his intelligence network can track down every black market branch in this world" Sobek replied. "At that point you will have to free our brothers. This way you will do good and at the same time you will have your revenge. But be clear, you will have to abide by two rules. The first is that innocent people should not be killed; if you devour black market operators or illegal fighting bettors I don't care, but I don't want civilian casualties. The second rule is that no one will have to understand that you and your team are part of this pack, so you will not have recognizable signs and will act as if you don't know us. You will be, in no uncertain terms, undercover"

Snock listened to every single word of the spinosaurus with extreme attention. His blood was already boiling: he not only had the opportunity to return to the pack and receive forgiveness, but he could even get his revenge! "How am I going to get our brothers here without letting anyone know I'm part of the pack?"

"I will give you a skill that I have just obtained, which will allow you to move from one place to another in a second. At the moment it is still raw, so you will have to start by dealing with the illegal market in Odaria and neighboring countries, but soon I will make it powerful enough to be able to move overseas as well" Sobek explained. "So, are you ok with this terms?"

The giganotosaurus nodded without thinking twice: "Yes, pack leader, I'm in! I'll do as you ask!"

"Fine, but don't call me pack leader. Until I deem you worthy, you will not receive my forgiveness and you will not be part of the pack again. At least, not officially" Sobek said. He had said 'not officially' because in reality since he had asked the giganotosaurus if he wished to return to the pack the [Contract] had been renewed; otherwise, how could she trade skills with him? "Until I revoke your exile, even when you are in the midst of the pack, you will not be able to carry any identifying signs with it, and you will not be able to talk, fight or befriend any member of the pack. Only when you have my forgiveness will you regain your position"

"I'll make sure to make myself worthy of that forgiveness then... my lord" Snock replied, not knowing how else to refer to Sobek.

"Good. Go then, and choose who will make up your team. And remember, no civilian casualties" the spinosaurus warned him again. The giganotosaurus nodded and withdrew quickly, thrilled by the new chance that life was offering him.