Silence and peace usually reigned within the luscious pastures of the Great Valley. That is, when a certain group of dinosaur kids weren’t up to any sort of shenanigans. As it happened, five familiar faces were traversing over one of the rockier parts of the valley, away from most of the vegetation and where exciting, mysterious caves dwelled. Littlefoot, Cera, Spike, Petrie and Ducky were entertaining themselves with a game of increasing dares to one-another, having little trouble making their way through the rocky terrain. At first, the game was nothing but fun for the five of them, with most of the dares being simple, silly ones that they could all enjoy.

But, as is what usually happened among some of the more hot-tempered of the crew, one vague dare ended up being more of an insult than something entertaining.

“Here,” Cera huffed, bringing the group to a halt and pointing at a particularly large entrance to a deep, dark cavern beyond. “Is this cave spooky enough for your dumb little dare?” Littlefoot, who had uttered the dare to “find a dark place to hide” some minutes ago, looked equally-irritated.

“I told you Cera, anyplace is fine! I didn’t mean–”

“Sure,” the young Triceratops brushed aside with a flick of her tail. Petrie the Pterodactyl fluttered nervously about the mouth of the large cave, hovering around the top and trying to squint his way in. Ducky was quivering, with wide eyes peering around the thick tail of her friend Spike, who seemed nonplussed of the whole affair. “Fine, we’re going in, and that’s final!” Without waiting for another word, Cera marched her chubby body into the darkness with her head held high. “We’ll see who’s brave and who isn’t now,” she muttered mostly to herself. Littlefoot paused at the entrance, gulped, but strode in after her. Petrie elected to ride on Littlefoot’s back, with Ducky scooped by Spike up onto his own. In no time at all the five young dinosaurs completely vanished into the large, inviting, mysterious cave, having no idea what laid within.

A few minutes of nervous spelunking didn’t yield anything interesting, scary or otherwise. Even Petrie, normally a wreck when doing anything related to the word “frightening”, was calm and collected, perched on Littlefoot’s head to get a better vantage point. Littlefoot’s neck was on a slow swivel when they ventured further, into a room that positively glittered. “Wow...”

“See? Not scary at all,” Cera announced with pride. She looked down at the reflective floor and sneered at her own reflection. “I’d call my dare complete.”

“Ooooh!” Ducky vocalized, hopping off Spike’s back and coming snout-to-snout with her own reflection. “This place is real pretty...”

“Never seen such shiny rocks before!” Petrie piped in, joining alongside Ducky to admire it up-close. Spike grunted in affirmation, giving the floor a curious long lick where he stood.

“Yeah this place is great...” Littlefoot looked back towards the entrance, which looked fairly small given how far they’ve come. “I’m thinking we maybe should head back though. We don’t want to get lost, and–” He was interrupted by a snort from his friend. “What, Cera?”

“Afraid of getting lost? In a shiny cave like this?” She laughed, rearing up and clopping her hard feet to the crystalline floor. “You really are scared, aren’t you Littlefoot! I’m gonna have to come up with something wicked for your dare...” A mischievous grin blossomed on Cera’s face. “...Whoever’s making that cracking noise cut it out! I’m trying to think!”

“Uh, Cera?” Petrie piped in. “I-it’s not us.” He pointed a winged claw to the floor about Cera’s feet, which began to spider out in a series of thick cracks. Suddenly the whole floor thundered with the splitting of crystal, and the dinosaurs all tries to scramble for the far-off exit! Before they could get far, the floor gave way and yawned open before them, crystalline rock and dinosaur alike all tumbling down into deeper darkness. Petrie himself had tried to fly but was too mingled with the falling debris to get a good headwind, and tumbled as fast as any of them. Their collective shrieks echoed throughout the sudden expansion of the cave, which were halted one by one as they landed not on solid ground, but in a deep underground lake! The splashes of crumbling rock and flailing bodies took over where screams fell silent, and it was chaos for a few moments. The friends were all calling out to one-another to find each other, and sighs of relief were breathed when everyone was found to be safe.

Aside the occasional leftover bit of floor plunking into the water there was no more sound, save for the gang all swimming fitfully towards a nearby shore of some kind. Spike was the first to make it out, tugging Ducky to safety by the tail, with the other three following. “Cera, that was your fault!” Littlefoot accused.

“How could it possibly be my fault?!”

“You’re the one that just had to go this far into the cave!”

The other three, shaking off excess water, shared a collective sigh. They looked to one-another in hopes that someone would be able to come up with one way to put an end to the bickering, but were distracted by the back-and-forth. Littlefoot’s neck was bent down to glower at Cera, whose head was held up defiantly in return. With all the arguing, Ducky snuck between Spike’s forelegs for a bit of comfort, looking down at the floor.

A floor much more shiny and reflective than the one they’d just fallen for. “Hey… Hey look!” she shouted excitedly over all the banter. Littlefoot and Cera both turned, with Petrie and Spike stealing a glance as well. Ducky looked up to the walls, and the part of the ceiling that was still intact. “Woooow...” The five ogled at their surroundings. The entire cavern was glowing and sparkling, with shiny crystal inhabiting the entirety of their surroundings. Glistening stalactites glimmered from above like a massive chandelier, and the walls jutted out at seemingly-purposeful angles and shapes to produce a wonderful sight for all the dinosaurs. The lake they’d fallen into itself reflected the glowing cavern to add an animated backdrop to beauty that rivaled the Great Valley itself.

All fighting ceased as the marvelous view enraptured the young ones, with five pairs of eyes darting about to take in its wonder. Ooohs and aaaahs echoed about as the five split up a little to explore (save Ducky and Spike, with the former riding the latter). Petrie was flapping about the ceiling to admire the clinging stalactites while the rest were on the ground. Cera in particular strolled furthest away from the river, nose to the ground and eyes wide, happily staring back at herself. Her little tail swayed back and forth when she caught a peculiar scent while exploring: The cave itself had no real scent to speak of so this one stuck out. She followed her nose all the way up to a rather dull-colored boulder, very large and settled in what appeared to be the middle of the floor. “Huh?” Cera pressed her stubby horn to it, and was surprised to see the surface yield a bit. Her eyes wandered higher, and the riddle was solved then and there. Two large nostrils protruded from an obvious muzzle, and some very sharp teeth lined what was an obvious mouth. Closed eyes dotted the top of what was the head of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, with the rest of its body laying lazily behind it!

“EEEEEEEEK!” Cera backpedaled and tripped over herself, sprawling on her back like an overturned turtle. The others, of course, heard Cera’s cry, and rushed right over, following the sound of her hollering. When the others arrived and asked what the matter was, with Spike using his head and neck to roll Cera back onto all fours, she turned to look at the idle large dinosaur before them. “I-it’s a… S-Sharptooth!” The chorus of screams that followed threatened to wake the dead, but not so much as a rock stirred from the ceiling despite this. During all the squealing, Cera stole another glance at the laying Rex. She squinted, then realized that it hadn’t moved at all! Could it be…?

“Wait...” Cera gulped and gingerly approached. She got right up to where sharp teeth were in reach, and carefully poked at its chin. She flinched, but there was no response. Gaining more confidence, she poked it a couple more times. Then backed up a few paces, reared, then charged forward to headbutt it!

“Cera!” Littlefoot cried. “What are you doing?!”

“It’s dead!” Cera crowed, butting it a couple times more and giggling. “Must’ve gotten trapped in the cave! Look!” She headbutted it once more and laughed. “Come on, let’s play!” Most of the others seemed convinced, eager to mob the Tyrannosaurus body and use it as their own personal playground. Petrie was the first to make it onto its back, perching and laughing along with the rest. Ducky was flung up with a careful fling of Spike’s tail, plopping by Petrie and giggling. Spike and Cera used one of its arms as a starting point, eventually getting to the top as well. While they played, Littlefoot stayed down below near the head, looking rather apprehensive.

“I-I don’t know…”

“Oh come on Littlefoot! Don’t tell me you’re scared of a dead Sharptooth!” Cera slid down the slope of the spine to the back of the head, which she climbed atop. “Guess we don’t need to play the dare game. We know which one of us is the biggest baby!” She pointed triumphantly down at the long-necked dinosaur. “Littlefoot!” Littlefoot blushed furiously, even fighting back tears while the others were laughing (albeit, because they were having fun, but Littlefoot construed it differently). He bared his flat teeth in a scowl with eyes narrowed.

“It’s too dangerous,” he growled. “I’m not a baby!”

“Nothing dangerous about a dead dino!” Cera countered with a smirk, looking down at Sharptooth’s limp head and grinning further. “If you’re not a baby then prove it! Why don’t you climb into Sharptooth’s mouth?” Her eyes narrowed in challenge. “I dare you.” She could hear Littlefoot’s teeth grinding, the Triceratops gliding down Sharptooth’s nose and landing right in front of him.

“Fine,” Littlefoot relented, willing to prove himself. “Fine, I’ll do it. I’ll show you how brave I am.” Cera, looking proud of herself, looked around for a moment then sped away. She returned with a large chunk of crystal in her mouth and got right up next to the large closed maw. The other three stopped their playing on the back of the Tyrannosaurus and watched eagerly. Cera took the long chunk of crystal in her mouth and angled her head to wedge it in between dry scaly dinosaur lips. She grunted and forced it in deeper, finding purchase and started wedging the mouth open. Her feet slid against the crystal floor but she maintained balance, eventually getting the bottom chunk of crystal nestled between a couple bottom teeth. Littlefoot gulped and stared into the now-visible Sharptooth maw. Drool drizzled from the top row of teeth to the bottom, and Littlefoot hoped they would all drip away before he had to go in there. Pink flesh and a large gullet sat in the back. But the first thing everyone noticed wasn’t the sights, but the smell. Even Spike, Ducky, and Petrie could smell the smelly air tinged with digested meat, the three covering their noses atop the Sharptooth’s back.

“Ugh, close it. It stinks!” Ducky whined. The other two nodded in agreement.

“Yeah Littlefoot, don’t go in,” Cera grinned, though she too was covering her snout with a spare foot. “Show us all how not a baby you are.” Littlefoot gulped again. He tried to ignore the smell as he approached, coming within inches of the now-open mouth, the slimy maw noisily dripping in saliva and smelling bad. Littlefoot did his best to ignore it as he dove his head under the teeth and slowly stuck his head inward. “All the way in,” Cera prompted and nudged against his flank.

“Don’t rush me!” Littlefoot snapped, though when he turned to face into the massive mouth his looks turned fearful again. But with Cera nudging him inward in more ways than one, he carefully stepped over the row of teeth and planted it on the wide red tongue. Littlefoot’s eyes clenched shut when it settled, the spongy surface making it sink in a little, drool pooling around it some. He peeked one eye open when nothing happened, Littlefoot gradually making his way all the way in. He pushed off the crystal surface with his remaining hinds and hopped inward, tail disappearing into the mouth and the small brave dinosaur now completely within the stinking Sharptooth maw. Littlefoot lowered his head and turned his neck, his grin smarmy and confident. “Hey Cera, watch this.” Holding his breath, Littlefoot journeyed across the lengthy tongue, straddling the middle, until he was at the back near the throat. He took short breaths to try to not breathe the rank air, but his heart swelled: It may have stunk and more of him was dripping in dead dino drool by the minute, but he’d completed his dare. Everyone but Cera (who was pouting) cheered, Littlefoot even doing a couple celebratory hops on the tongue.

Not one of them noticed the large eyes of Sharptooth slither open, iris narrowing as the familiar taste of dinosaur meat proliferated its tongue. It summarily flared its nostrils and casually sniffed the air, its smelling going unnoticed by the distracted prey that seemed to be all about it. Cera, the one who was in the best position to see Sharptooth rousing, was too busy glaring at Littlefoot. “This makes me braver than you,” he gloated, sticking his tongue out.

“Oh yeah?” Cera growled, jaws suddenly clamping down on the crystal keeping the jaws open. She yanked it out, much to Littlefoot’s shock, and the jaws slammed shut with a CLACK. “Stay in there one whole minute in the dark and then tell me you’re braver.”

“Cera!” Littlefoot shouted, more annoyed than anything. He lumbered across the wide tongue and banged his feet against the back of Sharptooth’s teeth. “Come on, this isn’t funny! Open it back up!” It took him a few moments to notice that the tongue he was standing on was beginning to move, Littlefoot not noticing until he lost his balance and fell forward. “Ack!” he yelped, smacking his head against clenched jaws and slipped under the tongue, which greedily glazed over him and lapped at his body. “O-oh no… CERA! Help! Sharptooth’s alive! I-it’s tongue’s moving!!! Help me!” Littlefoot fell silent when the slobbery organ slipped under his body and slathered him completely in smelly drool.

Cera rolled her eyes. “Oh suuure Littlefoot, suddenly Sharptooth’s alive and well and the tongue we can’t see is moving about.” She laughed, even as built-up drool began to leak from the corners of the sniffing Sharptooth’s mouth. She waddled beyond the maw to join her other friends on Sharptooth’s back, all while Sharptooth’s lips shifted about with the muffled squeals of Littlefoot within.

Littlefoot was beside himself, knowing that the worst place to be was inside a predator’s mouth. Things got worse when he was batted about, sloshed from one cheek to the other, and hearing a disturbing bubbling groan emanate from the throat. “Help!” He was forced to cough and sputter with a fresh wave of hot slimy drool washing over him with the tongue bathing him in the goop. Another growl grew from the throat, it louder than before with Littlefoot starting to get shuttered towards the twitching, very alive, gullet. He tried to stop Sharptooth from eating him but he couldn’t compete with the experienced tongue battering him about and gradually getting him towards the throat.

Littlefoot slipped over and over again, rolling along the tongue with every crest and wave of it tasting and slurping against his scales. Sharptooth was rather enjoying the youthful flavors the stupid long neck provided, and welcomed the lack of a hunt as it was still a bit sleepy, having its nap interrupted. The other ignorant children had no idea it was, in fact, alive and well. And they all wandered into its domain, giving it a wonderful set of snacks to chow down on. Littlefoot, the only one clued in at this point, was desperately trying to inform and convince his friends that this was the case. He tried pounding against the squishy tongue with his feet and tail, but could barely gain leverage. If nothing else he was further enamoring his flavor to the hungry Tyrannosaurus, Littlefoot hearing the stomach from far away groan, only audible through the throat. He whimpered, then gasped as a sudden lurch of the tongue sent him tumbling towards that blackness. He scrambled to a stop with just his tail hanging over the edge, legs all sprawled with his body pressed to the tongue, Littlefoot clinging to the messy drooling muscle for dear life. “Cera! Anyone, help me! Sharptooth’s gonna eat me aliiiiiiive!”

“Sure sure,” Cera dismissed, swaying her tail hearing the gratifying squeals of her totally-wimpy friend. She idly glanced to the side as she stood beside the thick Tyrannosaurus Rex neck. Did she see a muscle twitch? No, it was her imagination… The constant muffled cries were starting to get annoying, but they sounded… wetter… than before? Cera blinked twice, then her jaw dropped as she saw a large, blinking Tyrannosaurus Rex eye looking about.

“Mmph! Mmmmph!” Cera heard, with Sharptooth still barely moving. What Cera heard next she could not have imagined, the Triceratops trembling in place. Littlefoot’s squealing muffled cries suddenly silenced. “MMMM–” GLOURK! Littlefoot was effortlessly swallowed whole, and Cera was at the perfect vantage point to see Sharptooth’s dark neck swell with her friend’s bulge. The scales noisily stretched to make room, follow-up gulps also heard as Littlefoot was eaten alive.

Cera screamed at the top of her lungs. Littlefoot, whose own cries of terror weren’t heard past the thick flesh, pounded into the stomach with a slimy slosh, stomach acids idle but present in the formerly-napping Sharptooth’s belly. Neither friend could hear one-another, but Spike, Petrie, and Ducky heard Cera plain as day. So did Sharptooth, who raised its head and licked its lips, clapping its jaws at the taste of its first snack. Cera saw, with wide eyes, that the mouth was empty, and Littlefoot was its lunch. Sharptooth slowly rose to full height, the cave more than large enough for him. The three on its back screamed as the back sloped, the three tumbling down its scales towards its tail. Petrie took off from the now-unsteady perch. “Littlefoot! Littlefoot where are you?”

Cera couldn’t stop focusing on the neck that had bulged out moments ago, terror rooting her to the spot. The looming Sharptooth licked its lips and turned to face Cera, head lowered. It snapped its tail back and forth a couple times to rid itself of pests. Ducky clung near the tip and holding on for dear life. She squealed when Spike, was sent flying, legs flailing through the air as he soared to the middle of the lake and plunked in. Sharptooth ignored those future snacks, though, completely focused on the little Triceratops before its muzzle. Cera let out a whimpering plead as drool-dripping jaws opened behind her.  “P-please don’t eat me!” The hot breath washed over her, clearly not fast enough to outrun the mighty Sharptooth! Seeing the black throat unfroze her and she turned to run.

All seemed lost as the jaws inched closer, nearing her tail, when a small orange dart flew across her vision. “You won’t eat my friends!” Petrie declared, Sharptooth distracted just enough so that its jaws clacked on empty air, just barely missing Cera’s tail. Petrie, feeling bravery he hadn’t before, pecked at the top of the Sharptooth’s snout. He kept it up until those eyes crossed and focused on him. His mind went blank as those hungry eyes glared down on him, before they vanished in lieu of a yawning, wide-open maw. Petrie’s wings beat faster than he ever beat them before as he screamed and moved backward, but it wasn’t enough: The jaws slammed down around the tiny Pterodactyl, entrapping him within the hot, smelly confines of the maw. He flew around in utter terror for a moment before the tongue swatted him out of the air, squishing him to the roof of the mouth. He groaned with his wings twitching, now splayed across the tongue with drool coating his entire body. Sharptooth casually flicked its tongue, a squawking Petrie sent to the back of the throat, where he tumbled down the gullet without so much as a swallow. He tried to get control but the slobber coating him kept his wings glued to his sides. He was left screaming and crying out for help until he was effortlessly squished through the sphincter of the stomach, and landed into the growing pile of stomach acids with a plp.

Cera, unaware of Petrie’s fate, ran for her life. She ran and ran until seeing a large outcropping of crystal, and dove behind it to hide, out of sight. She panted and sweat, heart pounding, doing her best to try and calm down. “It… ate… Littlefoot!” she whimpered.

“Petrie! Spike! Spike help Petrie! Petrie ate! Petrie was ate!!” Ducky was beside herself with fear, arms legs and tail all clinging to the edge of Sharptooth’s own swaying tail. She was shaking like a leaf, eyes shut and bundled against her body. When she got no response from Spike, peeked one eye open: She gasped as she found herself being stared back at by Sharptooth, whose head was turned with one gleaming eye focusing on her. Spike was doing his best to make it back to shore as fast as possible, the giant dinosaur in full view. Seeing the carnivore leering at his friend, he gasped and swam as fast as he could, nearing the shoreline. He couldn’t find Cera, Petrie, or Littlefoot, and was getting very worried for Ducky’s fate as well!

Sharptooth’s tongue noisily ran over its lips at the sight of Ducky, craving more meat. Ducky whimpered when its head turned to face her, and she yelped when the tail flicked forward to bring her nearer still! She whimpered noisily when those nostrils flared before her, and the jaws yawned open not a foot in front of her face. “Don’t eat Ducky… Don’t eat Ducky!” she wailed as she clung to the tail as if it were a life preserver. It proved instead to be her doom as the tail tip was unceremoniously thrust into the gaping jaws, Sharptooth closing its mouth around its tail with Ducky inside! An anguished cry arose from the water, Spike still several feet from shore, as he saw Ducky get devoured into those jaws. Ducky coughed among the sticky smelly fluids encompassing her as her grip loosened and she ended up plastered to the tongue. Sharptooth turned its head and stomped heavily towards the shore. It pulled its tail free form his jaws, long thick strands of slobber maintaining its connection briefly until it flicked the tail away, and loomed over the swimming Spike. The Stegosaurus stopped swimming with the predator so near, frightened enough to call out for his friend. “D… Ducky!” he yelled, the single word an obvious demand to see her.

Sharptooth lowered its head and unintentionally granted Spike’s request: It opened its jaws wide, enough for Spike to see a dizzy Ducky on her back, wriggling against the sticky tongue and trying to get out. She managed to pull free as the jaws lowered over the wide-eyed Spike. “Spike! Don’t worry Ducky jump! No get ate! Then we can help others and–“ SPLOOSH! Tyrannosaurus Rex jaws slammed into the water, Ducky drowned out with the sudden flow. They clamped tightly down around Spike and settled him against Ducky and the tongue, Sharptooth, pulling its head up and letting its mouth and chin drip in excess water. “Nooo! Spike! Sharptooth c-c-can’t eat Spike! N-n-no eat Ducky!!!”

Sharptooth felt its latest snacks on its tongue, flicking the tip over them and tasting them. All the snacking was making it thirsty though, the carnivore dipping its head back into the lake. Cera, hearing everything, was curled into a ball, sobbing and shivering at hearing her friends’ fate. She only looked up over the crystal, to see the leaned-down Sharptooth drinking its fill, tail upturned for balance. She could believe her senses when she loud rude slurps of gallons of water as Sharptooth sucked it all in through clenched teeth. Ducky and Spike started floating off the tongue with so much water built up in the giant mouth, the two clinging to other in terror. They shared a collective squeal when they flooded towards the back of the throat. Sharptooth kept slurping in water continuously, and swallowed fluid and dinosaur alike in the first noisy wet GLUK! Cera flinched at the giant gulp. Cera watched with jaw hanging, unable to stop her friends being eaten alive, seeing the throat bulging out again and again: GLORK, ULK, ULP, GLK, SLRP, GLRK. Sharptooth’s neck bulged out with each and every swallow, with Ducky and Spike leading the train of bulges on their way down to the growling stomach. They flooded into the belly, which was starting to swell considerably. Four of the five little dinosaurs were eaten alive, swimming and squealing among a mix of stomach acid and water. Spike and Littlefoot just barely managed to stay afloat, with Ducky and Petrie trembling atop their respective heads. They could barely see but could hear the stomach gurgling loudly all about them, Spike and Littlefoot pounding uselessly against the squishy walls. Sharptooth felt none of it, lifting its head out of the water with large amounts slipping between its teeth and splashing back into the lake below. Its stomach was stretched wide and swayed with every giant step Sharptooth took, the predator using its nose to try and sniff out the final part of its five-course meal.

Cera quivered behind her hiding place, whimpering and whispering to herself over and over. “Please… Please… Don’t let it find me don’t let it eat me!” She let out a short squeak before throwing her feet over her muzzle when the booming stomps drew nearer. She saw that Sharptooth had a lazy, satisfied look across its face, sloshy belly noisily growling and grumbling in front of its large hinds. Try as she might, Cera couldn’t stop herself from staring at the wide, sagging stomach, knowing that all of her friends were devoured and doomed to digestion. She couldn’t hear anything from within the groaning stomach. Her vision was torn away from the stomach when she heard Sharptooth take a deep breath. She looked up to see jaws part and head lean forward, and cringed when the Tyrannosaurus loosed a thick, elongated wet belch. The cave walls shook madly, some pebbles falling to earth, as slobber and water alike splattered against the cave floor. Cera flinched when one landed on her head, making her look up just in time to see some stalactites breaking their hold and tumbling down! 

Cera squealed and motored her legs, avoiding being skewered by inches, zig-zagging along the floor until she saw no more threats from above. Her four legs quivered from exhaustion as she came to a stop and panted heavily. A slow, guttural growl snapped her out of her exhaustion instantly, her head and tail sticking up in sudden fright. Cera slowly turned to find herself right in the path of the dreaded Sharptooth, whose gaze seemed to pierced right through her. It smelled the air and lowered her head to the small Triceratops, who backpedaled on pure instinct, right into a shining wall. It slowly licked its lips, gobs of stinking slobber flecking over the trapped Cera. “Eugh! N-no, please! Please!” she begged, unable to do anything but back her butt into the wall and stumble into a sitting position. Cera curled her tail against her self and cringed when Sharptooth smacked its lips and began to drool heavily before her. Large strings of saliva dotted the cave floor under its chin, every plip sending a wave of terror through the Triceratops.

Sharptooth didn’t hesitate. Like so many times before it opened its jaws wide, bringing it over the sitting trapped Cera. Pent-up slobber dripped all over her as she could just stare at the looming muzzle descending upon her. Her mouth fell open in an ear-splitting squeal, eyes quivering in horror. Sharptooth lowered its jaws until its lips scrapped the cave floor surface and effortlessly scooped the shrieking girl dino into its mouth. Cera was silenced when her face was buried in tongue, Sharptooth lifting its head having completely engulfed her. Cera frantically tried to gain her footing but the mounds of drool and squishy surface of the tongue made it impossible. She gagged and groaned with the tongue slathering about her chubby body and squeezing it every which way. Cera had to fight to take a breath as she was tasted, gasping between bouts of slime that seemed to be everywhere. Sharptooth lifted its head up to neutral height and sloshed Cera about, savoring the final part of its unexpected meal. “Someone! Ugh! Anyone! Sharptooth’s eating me heeeelllllp!” Like Littlefoot before her, however, her words were muffled at best. But unlike him, there was no-one left to help her.

Cera felt like a lot of time slipped by as she tried with every ounce of strength to escape her fate as Tyrannosaurus chow. She pounded against the tongue or teeth or wherever else she could reach. She tried pushing up against the tongue while it compressed her to the ridged roof of the mouth. Her grip slipped causing her to smack her chin with a smck against the tongue. Sharptooth greedily slid said tongue back and forth with Cera’s pudgy form sprawled against it, and Cera swore even more drool was flooding the maw as a result. She knew all that build-up was flooding down the throat quietly, towards the stomach that she knew it led to. She could hear it groaning faintly deep down in the throat, and, she shivered, couldn’t hear her friends. Cera hollered and whined some more, despite knowing that no-one else was out in the cave other than the Sharptooth eating her, eventually devoting her energies to trying to pry the teeth open. But Sharptooth held strong and there was precious little that could open a Tyrannosaurus Rex’s jaws when they wanted them closed. She found them too slippery and even almost nicked herself due to their sharpness. Cera couldn’t stop screaming and squealing as she was tossed about, voice turning scratchy and hoarse as she was covered horn-to-tail in viscous slobber.

After what felt like forever, the tongue stilled somewhat. Cera panted and moaned on the center of the tongue, weakly scrabbling against taste buds to try and pull away from the gullet ahead of her. She tried to worm backwards, making little progress, before Sharptooth tipped its head back and closed its eyes. Cera squealed when the tongue rose up under her tail, cupping to her backside and further ushering her down the now-sloped maw. “Don’t eat me!” she begged one last time, forelegs scrambling against the wet tongue as she got to the back of the tongue…

GLURK!

Cera created a thick bulge down Sharptooth’s neck, the carnivore smacking its lips as the swallowed Triceratops was squelched and squeezed down the tight esophagus and beyond. Her wailing form was squeezed from all ends down the slimy, smelly throat, until her head bunched up against the large sphincter sealing the stomach away. With a cry she was squeezed tightly through, her fat form noisily plopping into the messy, grumbling stomach. She landed headfirst in the acidic fluids, tail and hinds flailing above the surface before she righted herself and gasping for breath, barely able to see in the near-total darkness. Sharptooth, its meal complete and stomach swelled considerably, languidly headed back to where it slumbered in the crystal cave. Its tail and belly swayed back and forth, with all five of its prey screaming and sloshing about the fluids that started to make their scales tingle. Cera joined the others in pressing to the stomach walls and begging to not be digested, but not a sound escaped the thick Tyrannosaurus hide.

Sharptooth made it back to its resting spot without incident, licking its lips as its swaying belly came to a stop. After another lip-smack, it lowered itself down and curled up to sleep. The five devoured dinos screamed when gravity when topsy-turvy on them, fluids sloshing everywhere. The swollen stomach pancaked partially against the ground, squishing outward and between Sharptooth’s hinds as it slowly fell into slumber. All within the stomach were sounds of whimpers and fearful squeaks, which intensified as time went on with the belly rumbling to life. The churning gurgles of the stomach became dominant with all five eaten dinos squished together, the walls compressing in and squeezing at them from all angles.

“Ducky… ate...”

“Petrie… Petrie need help...”

More frightful muttering continued with the stomach fluids rising. All water had sizzled away, leaving them all awash in the stomach acid of the mighty Sharptooth. They could hear its deep, slow breathing, knowing that their fate as food was sealed. Hours ticked away, bubbling churns and squelching walls working to digest them all. Littlefoot found himself pressed against Cera’s pudgy form, the worn-out long neck growling at her when he realized this. “This is all your fault,” he accused. Cera didn’t say anything. She just turned to look at Littlefoot, barely able to see his scowling face, and wilted under it. She said nothing, the guilt of dooming her friends swelling inside her. But her stubborn pride kept her silent on the matter. Reality snapped back in, however, when viscous, burning fluids slopped against them all, as fearful cries resumed.

And, after hours more still, there was only the sound of grumbling gurgles with the stomach sloshing around limp, lifeless meat about the swelling Tyrannosaurus Rex stomach.

Sharptooth slept through the rest of the day and night, and most of the following morning. It hadn’t planned on eating when it did, and the filling meal was more than enough to keep him down for a while. It awoke with a long, maw-stretched yawn, smelly breath strewn about without care. The breath was now tinged with the meat of Cera, Spike, Ducky, Petrie, and Littlefoot, all five digested and nothing but a few pitiful remains floating about Sharptooth’s belly. The carnivore slowly rose to its feet and swayed its heavy tail this way and that. Its belly wasn’t nearly as big as it was after having dined, but it maintained a small paunch of pudge from its recent meal. Sharptooth lazily lumbered its way to the exit of the cave while thinking about its unexpected treat. Thoughts floated back to all the tasty snacks, from the long neck to the tiny things to the Stegosaurus and finally finishing on the plump, delectable Triceratops. Sharptooth licked its lips as it lost itself in reminiscing during its journey, until it reached the exit and beyond, sun hitting scales. It looked about lazily before a burble the belly broke its concentration. Sharptooth smacked its lips a couple times, then yawned its jaws open wide, wide maw and gullet exposed to the world.

OOOOORRRRUUUUUAAAAAAAP!!!

A ground-quaking burp shattered the morning peace. Among the stale drool expelled from Sharptooth’s mouth came three acid-worn skulls, which tumbled along the ground before gathering up against a tree. The pitiful remains of Littlefoot, Spike, and Cera were left there by Sharptooth, who stomped away from them in search for some Great Valley breakfast. The three surviving skulls were left to stare lifelessly into the sky of the Great Valley, the rest of them reduced to nothing but some pudge on the belly of the great carnivore.