The Lost Plateau
The Triceratops
The Lost Plateau
Ages 3–5 · 6 min
A blurry sketch shows a dinosaur's giant bony frill — but all the details at the edge are smudged. Ned has a hypothesis: what if that frill isn't armor at all, but a secret message board?
The fire at Base Camp crackled. POP! A little spark jumped into the cool night air. It smelled of woodsmoke and, just a little, of burnt porridge.
Ned held Grandfather’s big notebook open on his lap. He pointed to a page. “Look at this,” he whispered.
The fire at Base Camp crackled. POP! A little spark jumped into the cool night air. It smelled of woodsmoke and, just a little, of burnt porridge.
Ned held Grandfather’s big notebook open on his lap. He pointed to a page. “Look at this,” he whispered.
Professor Hatch, Vera, and Bram leaned in close. The drawing showed a dinosaur’s head. It had a wide, flat shield of bone behind its eyes. A frill. But the drawing was all blurry.
“The mountain rain must have dripped on the page,” Vera said. The ink had run. You could see the shape of the frill. But all the details at the edge were a fuzzy, blue smudge.
Ned traced the blurry edge with his finger. “What was Grandfather trying to show us? Was it just a fancy decoration?” He looked up at the team, his eyes bright. “I have a hypothesis! An idea we can test!”
“I think that frill is a tool,” Ned said. “I think the dinosaur uses it to send messages. Secret signals! What do you think? Could a big bony plate be a secret message board?”
Professor Hatch stroked his chin. “A biological tool for communication! A fascinating hypothesis, Ned.”
“Then let’s go test it!” said Vera. “To the Steam-Crawler!”
CLANK! The door of the Steam-Crawler swung open. Bram climbed in first. THUMP. Then Professor Hatch. THUMP. Then Ned. THUMP. Vera hopped into the pilot’s seat. FWUMP.
She pulled a big brass lever. WHIRRRRRR. The engine rumbled like a sleeping giant waking up. Pipes began to glow. Steam started to puff. CHUFF… CHUFF… CHUFF…
“Are you ready for the Steam-Chant?” Vera called out. “Ready!” everyone shouted. Vera started the beat. “Pipes get hot! Pistons pump!”
Chuffa-chuffa-CLACK!
“Steam builds up! Wheels all thump!”
Chuffa-chuffa-CLACK!
The Steam-Crawler rolled forward, out of Base Camp. It rumbled past the thick, green leaves of the Tangle. Then, it moved out into the open, into the Jigsaw Earth.
The ground was dry and cracked into big puzzle pieces. The air grew thin and sharp. Every breath felt small. Vera pointed. “Can you feel that? The air is wobbly with heat.”
Suddenly, the Crawler hit a deep crack in the ground. KER-THUMP! The whole cabin shook!
Something went flying through the air. It was Bram’s wrench!
CLANG!
It landed right on his big toe. “Ow!” said Bram. He hopped up and down on one foot. Then he wiggled his toes and gave a little laugh. “All good! The wrench is fine!”
Vera slowed the Steam-Crawler down. She pointed to the far ridge where a big, brown cloud was growing. “A dust storm,” she said. “We have to be quick.”
She stopped the engine. HIIISSSSSSS. The rumbling stopped. Everything was quiet.
And then, the clouds above parted. A single, wide beam of sunlight pushed through. It hit the dusty ground, making a golden stage of light. The Sun-Bridge.
And right in the middle of the light… stood a dinosaur. It was as big as a bus. It had three horns on its face and that giant, bony frill behind its head. Its heavy feet made the ground tremble. THUMP… THUMP…
The dinosaur lowered its head and started to eat a tough, spiky bush. CRUNCH! RIIIIIP! MUNCH!
Ned whispered, “Look at its frill. It’s just a plain, dull brown.” Just then, a second dinosaur walked into the Sun-Bridge. The first one saw it and lifted its head.
And its frill began to change. WHOOSH! Bright patterns of red and orange flowed across the bone. It was like a sunrise blooming right on its head. The patterns swirled and danced.
The second dinosaur saw the signal. And its frill answered back! Waves of bright yellow and deep blue flashed across its face. They were talking to each other! With colors!
“Scientific Fact!” Professor Hatch whispered, his eyes wide. “Absolutely extraordinary!” He beamed at the crew. “That, my friends, is a Triceratops. And that spectacular frill… it’s like a giant billboard! One that can change its picture in a flash!” Ned’s hypothesis was right. The frill was a biological tool for sending signals.
A sudden gust of wind shook the Steam-Crawler. WHOOOOSH! “The dust storm is getting closer,” Vera said. “Time to roll!”
She pulled the big brass lever. WHIRRRR! RUMBLE! The Steam-Crawler turned and chuffed its way back across the Jigsaw Earth, leaving the two Triceratops to their colorful conversation.
Back at Base Camp, the fire crackled warmly. Outside, the wind howled, but inside they were safe and cozy. Ned had Grandfather’s notebook open again.
With a red crayon, he carefully drew the swirling patterns on the Triceratops frill. Then he added the orange. He smiled. The drawing wasn’t blurry anymore.
He passed the notebook to Bram. Bram took out his big, heavy stamper. It had a handle made of wood and thick rubber letters on the bottom.
“Discovery Number… four!” Bram declared. He lined up the stamp on the bottom of the page. He lifted it high. And brought it down.
KA-CHUNK!
“Logged!” said Bram. He wiggled the toes on his foot. “My toe feels much better now,” he said with a grin. The crew laughed. And the fire popped, warm and bright.
