Amethyst clouds only subsidized the abysmal black sky. If I had known what terror awaited me in this new and foreign land that morning, I would have dismissed the thought of boarding this dreadful locomotive.

When I first heard the loud nibbling and cracking, I thought maybe it was an infestation of mice that jolted me from my rest. Rubbing the blur from my vision, I noticed a dark oval mass on the bedside table, all the more assuring me that whatever happened last night was not a dream and this hell was far from over.

_Crack, crack._

__

I sifted my hand around remote controls and a mountain of bottled water until my spectacles touched my fingers; at least, I could see now. The dark mass was now a three-dimensional solid rock,

_Tap, tap._

_Tap._

__

An infantile crocodilian nose appeared, followed by a small toe with a large claw, and two smaller ones on either side.

I sprang from my bed and reached for the locked door. It occurred to me that this was some monochrome prison.

I glanced over my shoulder as the tapping was now a gurgling chirp.

I wailed in terror as a small, winged raptor sat on the table with one wing still in its shell, looking at me intently. Before I could yell for help again, the scaly creature shook the shell off his wing and flew directly at me.

‘HELP! SOMEBODY, PLEASE!’ The reptile landed upon my shoulder, its emerald, diamond-shaped eyes staring directly into my own.

‘Clara, I think one of your babies is here, my sweet, precious girl.’

A deep, growling purr accompanied the voice on the other side of the door.