History Literature / Prehistoria

** The illustration of the ''Tarbosaurus'' Khan pulverizing the lead ''Alioramus'' is appropriately titled [[Film/StarTrekTheWrathOfKhan "The Wrath of Khan"]].

''Prehistoria'' is a new series of short stories by Jack Blackburn that take place millions of years ago during the time of ancient animals. So far, only one entry, ''The Raptor's Tail'', has been published. It promises to place a massive emphasis on our modern understanding of prehistoric life, with a special section at the end of each book almost as long as the stories that goes into great detail as to how the author has ShownTheirWork.

The first story takes place during the Late Cretaceous period in Mongolia. It follows the life of an ''Adasaurus'' named Ruby trying to raise a new family in a land dominated by dinosaurs many times her size.

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* BehemothBattle: From Ruby's point of view, the fight between the ''Therizinosaurus'' and the ''Deinocheirus'' is like getting caught in-between a tussle between two kaiju.

* BigBad: For ''The Raptor's Tail'', the Alioramus’’ pack.

* StockDinosaurs: ''Tarbosaurus'' and ''Therizinosaurus''.

* SeldomSeenSpecies: ''Adasaurus'', ''Alioramus'', and ''Deinocheirus'' still haven't had the biggest track record in media, especially the raptor.

** The nest was already built when Ruby was driven from the forest and is built with sturdy timbers seemingly too big for her to move. [[spoiler:Because she wasn't the one who built it.]]

* TheReveal: [[spoiler: When Ruby lays an egg in her nest, it's completely different from the rest. Once Khan shows up, it becomes clear that Ruby's been guarding a ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ nest this whole time in a symbiotic relationship.]]

* RaptorAttack: Averted hard. The ''Adasaurus'' is as accurate as it can be with what is known. In fact, there's an entire expose at the end of ''"The Raptor's Tail"'' detailing the history of how raptors have been understood and portrayed in media and paleontology. Key points made are that the Dromaeosauridae family was extremely long lived and diverse, and even if some species were potentially pack hunting social predators, it is likely plenty of them were not.

* RealityEnsues: Contrary to fiction often favoring the "David" in David Vs. Goliath battles, in a real confrontation between a pack of smaller carnivores and a solitary apex predator; it's usually a CurbStompBattle in the latter's favor.

* {{Xenofiction}}: Everything is from the animals' point of view. To compound this, the author states again and again that they have no concept of things like good and evil or anything related to our morality. Everything is based on instinct and what it takes to survive.

** The illustration of the ''Tarbosaurus'' Khan pulverizing the lead ''Alioramus'' is appropriately titled [[Film/StarTrekTheWrathOfKhan ''"The Wrath of Khan"'']].

** One major example in ''The Raptor's Tail'' is how the dromaeosaur protagonist of a story taking place in the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous ''isn't'' a Velociraptor, something even Series/PrehistoricPlanet didn't get right, but a close descendant.

* HerbivoresAreFriendly: Averted and played with in regards to the ''Deinocheirus'' and ''Therizinosaurus'' respectively. The former is in musth and therefore attacks everything in sight, while the latter is passive to most creatures around it, and only registers the mad ''Deinocheirus'' as a threat.

* PredatorsAreMean: Downplayed in ''The Raptor's Tail''. The ''Adasaurus'' is our protagonist, and is only a threat to small creatures, [[spoiler: and the ''Tarbosaurus'' turns out to be the hero of the hour in the end.]] The ''Alioramus'' are the antagonists, but it's established that they're not evil, just doing what animals do.

** The illustration of [[spoiler: Khan pulverizing the lead ''Alioramus'']] is appropriately titled [[Film/StarTrekTheWrathOfKhan ''"The Wrath of Khan"'']].
* ShownTheirWork: Speculative features that fit within the margins of what is known aside, there dinosaurs designs are accurate at least as far as everything known by early 2023 is concerned. There's even a whole section of the book that demonstrates the science and history behind everything.

* ImperiledInPregnancy: Ruby ends up laying an egg as the ''Alioramus'' pack bears down on her nest.
* InterspeciesAdoption: [[spoiler: The epilogue of ''The Raptor's '' has Ruby bond with Khan's kids, who see her as a surrogate mother/nanny.]]

* RediculouslyCuteCritter: Baby ''Tarbosaurus'' are adorable, downy little things as hatchlings.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler: Ruby comes close to certain death during her time as Khan's nestkeeper, but in the end, she gets to raise both his and her own children by his side. It's also implied that her whole family will live on for generations to come.]]

** The nest was already built when Ruby was driven from the forest and is built with sturdy timbers too big for her to move. [[spoiler:Because she wasn't the one who built it.]]

* Foreshadowing: Several.

The first story takes place during the Late Cretaceous period in Mongolia. It follows the life of an ‘‘Adasaurus’’ named Ruby trying to raise a new family in a land dominated by dinosaurs many times her size.

* BehemothBattle: From Ruby's point of view, the fight between the ''Therizinosaurus’’ and the ‘‘Deinocheirus’’ is like getting caught in-between a tussle between two kaiju.

* BigBad: For ''The Raptor's Tail'', the ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack.
* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler: Khan the ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ trounces the ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack raiding Ruby's nest after hearing her cry for help.]]
* ChekhovsGun: [[spoiler: The large footprint in the glade is revealed to be that of the local ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’.]]

** [[spoiler: Likewise, Ruby's ability to mimic a ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ call is utilized to its full extent during the ‘‘Alioramus’’ confrontation.]]
* ConservationOfNinjitsu: [[spoiler: Three able-bodied ‘‘Alioramus’’ vs. one ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’. The latter barely even gets scratched.]]
* CoolVsAwesome: ‘‘Therizinosaurus’’ and ‘‘Deinocheirus’’, two of the most unique dinosaurs ever discovered, fight when the latter assaults the former in a musth-driven fury.
* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler: Khan utterly demolishes the ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack, nearly killing them before they retreat.]]

* HerbivoresAreFriendly: Averted and played with in regards to the ‘‘Deinocheirus’’ and ‘‘Therizinosaurus’’ respectively. The former is in musth and therefore attacks everything in sight, while the latter is passive to most creatures around it, and only registers the mad ‘‘Deinocheirus’’ as a threat.
* ImperiledInPregnancy: Ruby ends up laying an egg as the ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack bears down on her nest.
* InterspeciesAdoption: [[spoiler: The epilogue of "The Raptor's Tail" has Ruby bond with Khan's kids, who see her as a surrogate mother/nanny.]]
* InterspeciesFriendship: [[spoiler: Ruby (an ''Adasaurus'') and Khan (a ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’) are in a symbiotic relationship mostly based off that of the Nile crocodile and the water dikkop bird. Ruby looks after the Tyranosaur's eggs while he provides food and protection if need be.]]

* PapaWolf: Male ''Tarbosaurus'' with young are portrayed as dutiful fathers, modeled after cassowaries and eagles. [[spoiler: Khan drops everything he's doing when it becomes clear that both his nest and Ruby are in danger. The ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack is crippled immensely once he shows up.]]
* PredatorsAreMean: Downplayed in ''The Raptor's Tail''. The ‘‘Adasaurus’’ is our protagonist, and is only a threat to small creatures, [[spoiler: and the ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ turns out to be the hero of the hour in the end.]] The ‘‘Alioramus’’ are the antagonists, but it's established that they're not evil, just doing what animals do.
* RaptorAttack: Averted hard. The ‘‘Adasaurus’’ is as accurate as it can be with what is known. In fact, there's an entire expose at the end of ''"The Raptor's Tail"'' detailing the history of how raptors have been understood and portrayed in media and paleontology. Key points made are that the Dromaeosauridae family was extremely long lived and diverse, and even if some species were potentially pack hunting social predators, it is likely plenty of them were not.

* SeldomSeenSpecies: ‘‘Adasaurus’’, ‘‘Alioramus’’, and ‘‘Deinocheirus’’ still haven't had the biggest track record in media, especially the raptor.

** The battle between the ‘‘Therizinosaurus’’ and the ‘‘Deinocheirus’’ is meant to be a nod to {{Kaiju}} fights in general.
** The illustration of [[spoiler: Khan pulverizing the lead ‘‘Alioramus’’]] is appropriately titled [[Film/StarTrekTheWrathOfKhan ''"The Wrath of Khan"'']].

* StockDinosaurs: ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ and ‘‘Therizinosaurus’’.
* SummonBiggerFish: [[spoiler: Ruby gets the attention of Khan the ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ to fend off ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack.]]
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: [[spoiler: The fight between the ‘‘Therizinosaurus’’ and the ‘‘Deinocheirus’’ is violent, yes, but it doesn't end with one or the other dead like it would in most pop culture fights. Instead, they have their tussle, and then instantly calm down and retreat when it becomes clear that a ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ isn't far away.]]
* ThatsNoMoon: The little island in the middle of the water isn't an island, but the hump of a ‘‘Deinocheirus’’ poking out.
* VoiceChangeling: A major skill of the ‘‘Adasaurus’’ is the ability to mimic a ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’ vocalizations, on top of having tail markings resembling one's eyes. [[spoiler: It's incremental to summoning Khan to help Ruby.]]

* BigBad: For "The Raptor's Tail", the ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler: Ruby comes close to certain death during her time as Khan's nestkeeper, but in the end, she gets to raise both his and her own children by his side. It's also implied that her whole family will live on for a generation or two.]]

* Foreshadowing: [[spoiler: When the adult male ''Tarbosaurus'' shows up, his first major action upon attacking the ''Alioramus'' pack is to put himself between them and Ruby and the nest. It's not on accident, he's protecting them.]]

* InterspeciesFriendship: [[spoiler: Ruby (a raptor) and Khan (a ‘‘Tarbosaurus’’) are in a symbiotic relationship mostly based off that of the Nile crocodile and the water dikkop bird. Ruby looks after the Tyranosaur's eggs while he provides food and protection if need be.]]
* MamaBear: When faced with protecting her eggs or self-preservation, Ruby always chooses the former.
* PapaWolf: [[spoiler: Khan drops everything he's doing when it becomes clear that both his nest and Ruby are in danger. The ‘‘Alioramus’’ pack is crippled immensely once he shows up.]]

* RaptorAttack: Averted hard. The ‘‘Adasaurus’’ is as accurate as it can be. In fact, there's an entire expose at the end of "The Raptor's Tail" detailing the history of how raptors have been understood and portrayed in media and paleontology.

''Prehistoria'' is a new series of short stories by Creator/JackBlackburn that take place millions of years ago during the time of ancient animals. So far, only one entry, ''The Raptor's Tail'', has been published. It promises to place a massive emphasis on our modern understanding of prehistoric life, with a special section at the end of each book almost as long as the stories that goes into great detail as to how the author has ShownTheirWork.

The first story takes place during the Late Cretaceous period in Mongolia. It follows the life of an Adasaurus named Ruby trying to raise a new family in a land dominated by dinosaurs many times her size.

* BehemothBattle: From Ruby's point of view, the fight between the Therizinosaurus and the Deinocheirus is like getting caught in-between a tussle between two kaiju.

* BigBad: For "The Raptor's Tail", the Alioramus pack.
* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler: Khan the Tarbosaurus trounces the Alioramus pack raiding Ruby's nest after hearing her cry for help.]]
* ChekhovsGun: [[spoiler: The large footprint in the glade is revealed to be that of the local Tarbosaurus.]]
** [[spoiler: Likewise, Ruby's ability to mimic a Tarbosaurus' call is utilized to its full extent during the Alioramus confrontation.]]
* ConservationOfNinjitsu: [[spoiler: Three able-bodied Alioramus vs. one Tarbosaurus. The latter barely even gets scratched.]]
* CoolVsAwesome: Therizinosaurus and Deinocheirus, two of the most unique dinosaurs ever discovered, fight when the latter assaults the former in a musth-driven fury.
* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler: Khan utterly demolishes the Alioramus pack, nearly killing them before they retreat.]]

* HerbivoresAreFriendly: Averted and played with in regards to the Deinocheirus and Therizinosaurus respectively. The former is in musth and therefore attacks everything in sight, while the latter is passive to most creatures around it, and only registers the mad Deinocheirus as a threat.
* ImperiledInPregnancy: Ruby ends up laying an egg as the Alioramus pack bears down on her nest.

* InterspeciesFriendship: [[spoiler: Ruby (a raptor) and Khan (a Tarbosaurus) are in a symbiotic relationship mostly based off that of the Nile crocodile and the water dikkop bird. Ruby looks after the Tyranosaur's eggs while he provides food and protection if need be.]]

* PapaWolf: [[spoiler: Khan drops everything he's doing when it becomes clear that both his nest and Ruby are in danger. The Alioramus pack is crippled immensely once he shows up.]]
* PredatorsAreMean: Downplayed in ''The Raptor's Tail''. The Adasaurus is our protagonist, and is only a threat to small creatures, [[spoiler: and the Tarbosaurus turns out to be the hero of the hour in the end.]] The Alioramus are the antagonists, but it's established that they're not evil, just doing what animals do.
* RaptorAttack: Averted hard. The Adasaurus is as accurate as it can be. In fact, there's an entire expose at the end of "The Raptor's Tail" detailing the history of how raptors have been understood and portrayed in media and paleontology.
* TheReveal: [[spoiler: When Ruby lays an egg in her nest, it's completely different from the rest. Once Khan shows up, it becomes clear that Ruby's been guarding a Tarbosaurus nest this whole time in a symbiotic relationship.]]
* SeldomSeenSpecies: Adasaurus, Alioramus, and Deinocheirus still haven't had the biggest track record in media, especially the raptor.
* ShoutOut: Ruby is, in some ways, very similar to Literature/RaptorRed, being a raptor who lost her mate and has to raise children mostly alone.
** The battle between the Therizinosaurus and the Deinocheirus is meant to be a nod to {{Kaiju}} fights in general.
** The illustration of [[spoiler: Khan pulverizing the lead Alioramus]] is appropriately titled [[Film/StarTrekTheWrathOfKhan "The Wrath of Khan"]].
* ShownTheirWork: There isn't a single thing inaccurate and/or outdated regarding the designs of the dinosaurs, at least as far as everything known by early 2023 is concerned. There's even a whole section of the book that demonstrates the science and history behind everything.
** One major example in ''The Raptor's Tail'' is how the protagonist of a story taking place in the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous ISN'T a Velociraptor, something even Series/PrehistoricPlanet didn't get right, but a close descendant.
* StockDinosaurs: Tarbosaurus and Therizinosaurus.
* SummonBiggerFish: [[spoiler: Ruby gets Khan the Tarbosaurus' attention to beat the Alioramus pack.]]
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: [[spoiler: The fight between the Therizinosaurus and the Deinocheirus is violent, yes, but it doesn't end with one or the other dead like it would in most pop culture fights. Instead, they have their tussle, and then instantly calm down and retreat when it becomes clear that a Tarbosaurus isn't far away.]]
* ThatsNoMoon: The little island in the middle of the water isn't an island, but the hump of a Deinocheirus poking out.
* VoiceChangeling: A major skill of the Adasaurus is the ability to mimic a Tarbosaurus' vocalizations, on top of having tail markings like one's eyes. [[spoiler: It's incremental to summoning Khan to help Ruby.]]

** One major example in ''The Raptor's Tail'' is how the protagonist of a story taking place in the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous ISN'T a Velociraptor, something even Series/PrehistoricPlanet didn't get right, but a close descendent.

* VoiceChangeling: A major skill of the Adasaurus is the ability to mimic a Tarbosaurus' vocalizations, on top of having tail markings like one's eyes. [[spoiler: It's incremental to summoning Khan to help Ruby.]]

* UsefulNotes/StockDinosaurs: Tarbosaurus and Therizinosaurus.

** One major example in ''The Raptor's Tail'' is how the protagonist of a story taking place in the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous ISN'T a Velociraptor, something even Series/PrehistoricPlanet didn't get right, but a close relative.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: [[spoiler: The fight between the Therizinosaurus and the Deinocheirus is violent, yes, but it doesn't end with one or the other dead like it would in most pop culture fights. Instead, they have their tussle, calm down, and walk away not wanting to get themselves killed for no good reason.]]

** One major example in ''The Raptor's Tail'' is how the protagonist of a story taking place in the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous ISN'T a Velociraptor, something even Series/PrehistoricPlanet didn't get right, but a close relative.