Elsewhere


We stood on the precipice, looking out over the valley below.  "All the way over there, huh," Tony grimaced.
  "Yeah, you can just make out the crash perimeter," I confirmed, pointing into the distance.  "We came down near vertical, so no matter how far we are above ground level it shouldn't be too far away from there," I started to say, but before I could finish "vertical" I was interrupted by a terrible roar from below.
  With a tremendous crashing sound the forest canopy beneath us shook and rippled like the surface of a lake before tearing asunder to reveal the source of the noise - a gargantuan creature rising to its feet.  The behemoth was so large that as fast as it moved, its sheer size dictated it took a clear seven seconds to reach its full height.  I glanced at Tony as the displaced air rushed past us; he was looking up at the beast in awe, unafraid, already sizing up its potential weak spots and tactical assets.
  "What the hell do you call that?" he asked, expecting me to continue my biology travelogue.
  "That," I replied, "I call a Big-Ass Mofo."
  Tony grinned, and as we simultaniously readied our climbing gear I decided he had to be about as crazy as I was.  He helpfully confirmed this with his next declaration.
  "Race you to the top!"

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