“Ola. My name is Javier Jimenez reporting live for The Peruvian News Network. I’m here in the Amazon Rainforest where a small plane crashed on route from Brazil to Peru. The wreckage has been located but we have yet to locate any of the passengers. Aboard the plane was the pilot, Hector Cruz and three young children ages 1 to 12.”

“The Delgado family consists of 12 year old Xenia, 10 year old Diego and 1 year old Pedro. The pilot, Hector Cruz is also the children’s uncle. The chances of survival appear to be slim due to the heat and a long list of dangerous animals including jaguars, snakes, and other predators. Search and Rescue teams are planning to cover as much of the rainforest as they can. We will continue to follow this breaking news.”

The children ventured into the rainforest in search of shelter, water, and possibly something to eat. As they stopped to catch their breath, Diego noticed that Pedro had wandered off. Xenia freaked out as she and Diego frantically began searching for their baby brother. The rainforest was a beautiful sight filled with fragrant flowers and lush vegetation. It also was home to dangerous creatures including snakes, jaguars, spiders, and…….

Dinosaurs? Pedro met up with what appeared to be a living, breathing dinosaur. Only this dinosaur appeared to be much smaller compared to the giant beasts we learned about in school. At first, Pedro seemed unafraid of the dinosaur. Hot and cranky, he soon began to cry uncontrollably. Unsure about how to react, the dinosaur let out a mighty roar. Wait, that’s not a roar. Was that opera?  Whatever it was, it scared off a couple of hungry jaguars.

Xenia and Diego ran towards where they heard all the commotion. When they arrived they were shocked to find Pedro fast asleep in the arms of a dinosaur. 

“Don’t be afraid” the dinosaur began. “My name is Pavarotti and yes, I am a talking dinosaur.”

“Like Barney?” Xenia asked.

“Kinda. Just less annoying. You both appear to be in rough shape. Follow me, we have plenty of food, water, and shelter.”

“What do we do Xenia?” Diego whispered.

“We don’t have much choice” Xenia replied.

Off in the distance was Johan Kruger. He was from a wealthy South African diamond mining family. He was also a big game hunter who saw the magnificent animals he hunted as trophies. While out scouting his prey, Kruger caught a glimpse of what looked like a dinosaur.

“Mates” he whispered into his phone, “You’re not going to believe what I just saw. Meet me at our usual meeting place.”

Eventually the extreme heat and exhaustion got to Xenia and Diego. Pavarotti was able to bring them some water and fresh fruit as they fought to stay awake.

“We’ll stop here for a bit. Plus it’ll give me a chance to tell you about myself. When a massive comet crashed into the earth millions of years ago, it destroyed all of the dinosaurs. But before that happened some of the dinosaurs hid their eggs across the world. They hid us so well that we remained in those eggs until recently. As your planet began to heat up we finally hatched.”

“A few years ago I popped out of my shell. I was soon joined by Domingo and the other guy. I keep forgetting his name. Anyhoo, we found ourselves in the middle of the rainforest. There was plenty of vegetation to sustain our plant-based diets. We’ve been able to live here unbothered by the outside world ever since. We’re what you would call ‘dwarf dinosaurs.’ We just wanna live in peace and hopefully one day meet some of the other dinosaurs who may be out there somewhere” Pavarotti informed the dozy children.

Over the course of the next few weeks the dinosaurs were able to provide the children with food, shelter, and safety. Well, at least they did for a little while. Domingo, the triceratops couldn’t shake the feeling that the group was being watched. They had managed to go undetected for many years in the rainforest. The children were the only humans they had ever interacted with. But what if there was another collection of people that sought to do them harm?

“Took a look mates. Dinosaurs. Three of ‘em. Can you imagine the fortune we will make when we bring them back into civilization” Jonah exclaimed. “We’ll hold out and sell them to the largest bidder. Or we’ll just keep them and put them on display across the globe. Either way we’re going to filthy rich. Get the nets and weapons. We’re going dinosaur hunting.”

On his way back from visiting something or someone, the other dinosaur spotted the poachers and rushed back to warn his friends.

But he was too late as the dinosaurs were ensnared in some giant nets. The more they struggled, the more knotted up the nets became. Before approaching the dinosaurs, Johan and his men sedated them with poisonous darts rendering the dinos unconscious. All the while the children hid in the bushes watching helplessly as their friends had been captured.

“Time to load these giant lizards into the jeeps. Fame and fortune is ours!” Johan bellowed.

Before his team could transport the dinosaurs, loud noises interrupted the serenity of the rainforest.