6 Race to the nest

Chapter Six RACE TO THE NEST "The crack must have been caused by the earthquake," Cheng said. He knelt down and scooped up a handful of soil. "This ground has only just been disturbed." "The crack must end somewhere," Tamiko said. She started walking along it. "For all we know, the mother Archaeopteryx could already be back in her conifer, wondering

where her egg has gone. We've got to get her baby back to her!" They hurried along. Some trees had fallen down, uprooted by the earthquake. Ahead of them a large boulder slid into the crack. It felt like forever before Tamiko and Cheng heard it land at the bottom. "This is no good," Tamiko said, after ten minutes of walking. They still couldn't see the end of the crack. "Let's try the other direction."

They turned back. As they walked, Cheng lifted worms and bugs from broken clods of earth for the hungry little dinosaur. "I don't think this crack is ever going to end," he said, peering up ahead. Tamiko groaned. This was taking way too long. She sat down on a fallen tree to think… and an idea struck her. She jumped up. "We can use this tree to make a bridge!" "Good idea," said Cheng. "In theory." Tamiko put her hands on her hips. "What do you mean, in theory?"

"It's massive," said Cheng. "We'll never be able to move it." He had a point. The tree was enormous, with a thick trunk and huge branches. "But we could look for a smaller one," Cheng added. Broken trees lay around them like spilled matches. Tamiko took off her hoodie once more and left the Archaeopteryx inside it, enjoying a worm. Then she and Cheng clambered around the fallen tree, searching for the perfect bridge. They tried to lift one or two of the smaller ones, but couldn't get a grip. Their best find was a small, stout ginkgo tree which lay near the deep crack.

Together, they rolled the broken tree across the ground. "Let's both keep hold of one end," Tamiko said, "and push it across the crack." They both held onto one end of the trunk and shuffled it along. Earth fell away as the trunk inched over the edge of the crack. Clods thumped into the darkness below. Finally, the far end of the trunk touched down on the other side. Tamiko and Cheng cheered.

"Nice work, team-mate!" said Tamiko, grinning. Something brushed past her ankles, making her jump. She glanced down to see a Compsognathus hurtle past her. A whole group of the little carnivores sprinted out from a clump of ferns, screeching and snapping their teeth. "The Archaeopteryx!" Tamiko cried. "They'll eat it!"