Bayu didn't have time to think about the message TIMESTAMP: +3 YEARS that was still displayed on the screen. The rumbling sound from deep within the forest was getting closer, causing the surrounding trees to tremble. Even the Allosaurus that had been stalking him moments ago began to change its behavior. Its head lifted, its eyes no longer focused on Bayu, but on something far beyond the trees. That opportunity wouldn't come twice. Bayu immediately turned around and ran. He crashed through the undergrowth without caring about the branches scratching his face and arms. The laboratory coat he was wearing was already torn in several places, while the modern shoes that had once been comfortable on the smooth laboratory floor now felt like heavy weights as he ran across muddy ground and over the roots of enormous trees. A roar echoed behind him. The Allosaurus was chasing him again. Bayu didn't dare look back. He relied only on the sound of its footsteps to judge the distance between them. Every heavy step caused the ground to tremble, while the predator's labored breathing grew clearer between the trees. “Damn…” Bayu forced his body to keep moving even though his lungs felt like they were on fire. He needed to find shelter. Not fight. Not run aimlessly. Hide. His knowledge of biology told him one thing very clearly: a human being could never win a physical confrontation against a predator of that size. Even if he had a weapon, he had no idea how effective it would be against the body of a creature that might have already undergone genetic alterations. Bayu quickened his pace when he spotted a small slope ahead. The ground there was higher and covered with exposed tree roots that formed something resembling a natural wall. He immediately changed direction and ran along the side of the slope, hoping to throw off his trail. But the Allosaurus wasn't that easy to fool. The heavy footsteps were still following him. Bayu bit his lip. “It can smell me…” He remembered the behavior of modern predators. Tigers, wolves, crocodiles, even Komodo dragons could detect prey through a combination of sight, smell, sound, and vibrations. If this Allosaurus possessed similar abilities, hiding behind ordinary bushes wouldn't be enough. Then Bayu saw something to his right. A fallen tree. Its trunk was nearly two meters in diameter, creating a narrow space between its exposed roots and the ground. Behind it was a dark opening large enough for a human body. Without thinking twice, Bayu turned toward it. He threw himself onto the ground, crawled beneath the roots, then pulled several dry leaves over the opening to conceal it. After that, he shut down the Temporal Displacement Unit and held his breath. Several seconds passed. The forest fell silent again. Bayu pressed his body against the ground and tried to control his breathing. His chest rose and fell rapidly. Sweat trickled from his temples down his neck, while his hand still gripped the temporal device, which felt warm against his palm. Then he heard it. THUD. Bayu closed his eyes. THUD. The footsteps were getting closer. The ground beneath his body trembled every time the predator's feet struck the earth. Bayu slowly covered his mouth with one hand. He didn't even dare swallow. A massive shadow passed through the small gap between the leaves. The Allosaurus. The creature stopped not far from his hiding place. Bayu could see part of its legs through the roots of the fallen tree. Its long claws dug into the soil, while its tail moved slowly between the trees. Bayu held his breath for as long as he could. The Allosaurus lowered its head. Its nostrils moved. It was sniffing. Bayu felt his heart pounding so hard that he was afraid the sound itself might give him away. The creature took one step forward. Then another. Its head slowly turned toward the fallen tree where Bayu was hiding. Bayu tightened his grip on the temporal device. If the predator found him, he had nowhere to run. Suddenly, a deep rumbling sound came from the distance. The Allosaurus raised its head. A long roar shook the forest. This time, the sound was much deeper than before. Bayu could feel the vibration even from inside his hiding place. The Allosaurus hesitated. The creature turned toward the sound, then looked back at the fallen tree in front of it. After several seconds, it released a low growl and finally moved away. Bayu didn't move immediately. He waited. One minute. Two minutes. Only after the predator's footsteps had completely disappeared did Bayu finally dare to take a deep breath. “That was close…” He slowly crawled out from his hiding place and sat against the tree roots. Both of his hands were trembling—not only from fear, but because his body was beginning to run out of energy. He looked at himself. His knees were scraped. His palms were covered in mud. One section of his laboratory coat had been torn open, leaving a long scratch across his skin. Bayu touched the wound and winced. “At least it's not too deep.” He then checked the Temporal Displacement Unit. The device was still functioning, but most of its indicators had turned red. CHRONO-CORE INTEGRITY: 38% ENERGY RESERVE: 17% TEMPORAL RETURN: UNAVAILABLE Bayu stared at the last line for several seconds. “Great…” He let out a small laugh, but there wasn't the slightest trace of amusement on his face. “Thrown millions of years into an unknown era, chased by a dinosaur, and now my time machine is almost out of energy.” Bayu rested his head against the tree trunk. “What a terrible day.” But after a few seconds, his expression became serious again. He couldn't waste any more time. If the device really was his only way home, then the remaining energy had to be preserved as carefully as possible. He had no idea whether there were any other energy sources in this world, let alone whether the damaged Chrono-Core could still be repaired. Bayu activated the environmental scan. The small screen lit up again. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS TEMPERATURE: 31.7°C HUMIDITY: 84% ATMOSPHERIC OXYGEN: 19.8% WATER SOURCE: DETECTED Bayu froze. “Water.” For the first time since arriving in this world, he had received some genuinely useful news. A navigation marker appeared on the screen, indicating a water source approximately six hundred meters from his current position. Bayu stood up. If he wanted to survive, his priorities were simple: Water. Shelter. Food. Information. He put the device back into his pocket and began walking slowly. But after only a few steps, he stopped. Something felt wrong. The forest around him was too quiet. Bayu looked at the Allosaurus tracks in the soil. The footprints led away, heading in the opposite direction from the water source. He frowned. “Why did it leave?” Bayu remembered the deep rumbling sound that had caused the predator to retreat. Then he noticed something on a nearby tree trunk. Claw marks. Five long lines had torn through the bark nearly three meters above the ground. Bayu approached and touched the marks. They were fresh. Small pieces of bark crumbled beneath his fingers. He estimated the size of the claws based on the distance between the marks. Whatever had left those scratches was far larger than the Allosaurus that had chased him. Bayu slowly pulled his hand away. “So that means…” He stared toward the part of the forest where the rumbling sound had originated. “The reason the Allosaurus left wasn't because it was afraid of me.” The realization sent another chill down his spine. The Allosaurus had been avoiding something. And whatever that something was might still be nearby. Bayu immediately changed his plan. He wouldn't head directly toward the water source. At least, not yet. If a massive predator controlled the territory around the water, that place could actually be a trap. Bayu decided to find higher ground first so he could observe the surroundings before moving any farther. He followed the slope carefully. After about twenty minutes, he found a rock formation partially covered by roots and vines. Behind it was a narrow opening leading into a dark space. Bayu used the remaining light from the temporal device to inspect it. It wasn't a large cave. Just a natural cavity beneath the rocks. But it was large enough for one person. More importantly, the entrance faced the slope and was difficult to see from below. Bayu slowly crawled inside. The space was dry and showed no signs of any large animal having occupied it. For now, it was safe enough. Bayu sat down and leaned his back against the stone wall. Finally, he could rest. He took a small water bottle from his waist bag. Only a few sips remained. Bayu stared at the bottle for several seconds before taking a small drink. Not because he wanted to save it. Because he knew the remaining water might have to last until he found a truly safe water source. After putting the bottle away, Bayu activated the screen of the temporal device. He began analyzing all the data he had collected since arriving. Species that didn't match the database. Anomalous genetic traces. EDEN-0 PROJECT. A temporal signal from three years in the future. And creatures that shouldn't exist in Earth's history. All the clues seemed to point toward a single conclusion. This wasn't simply the past. Someone had done something to this world. Bayu enlarged the environmental map. Several red points appeared on the screen. At first, he assumed they represented large organisms. But after zooming in, Bayu realized something that made his expression change. The red points formed a pattern. They weren't scattered randomly. They formed a large circle around the area where Bayu was located. At the center of the circle was a single blue point. TEMPORAL ANCHOR Bayu stared at the coordinates. The location was only a few kilometers from his hiding place. “So there's something there…” He enlarged the map again. A structure appeared in the scan. Its shape didn't resemble a rock. It didn't resemble a nest. And it was definitely not something formed naturally. Bayu stared at the screen without blinking. In the middle of a prehistoric world that should have known nothing of human civilization, his device had just detected a man-made structure. Before he could open the remaining data, footsteps sounded outside. Bayu immediately shut off the screen. He held his breath and stared at the entrance of the cavity. A massive shadow slowly moved behind the hanging vines. One step. Then a second. Bayu pressed his body against the stone wall. He didn't know whether it was the same Allosaurus that had chased him earlier—or something far larger. The shadow stopped directly in front of the entrance. Then came the sound of heavy breathing from outside. Bayu stared at the Temporal Displacement Unit still clutched in his hand. This time, he didn't even dare turn it on. Because if the device attracted the creature's attention… his hiding place might become a trap instead.

Chapter 2 — The Predator's Trail