You are in the forests of New Mexico, 90 million years ago.

The air in the Zuni Basin was thick, humid, and smelled of decaying vegetation and nearby volcanic ash. You sat quietly against the trunk of a large conifer tree, watching the edge of a shallow, brackish pond.

Suddenly, a flash of movement appeared near the ferns. A theropod dinosaur about the size of a modern coyote appeared, barely reaching your waist in height.

A Suskityrannus.

It was sleek, not robust like its later powerful cousins, with a long snout, slender, three-fingered hands—not two-fingered like T. rex, and a very long, balancing tail. Its plumage—a mix of dark browns and olive greens—allowed it to disappear perfectly into the swampy undergrowth. It was scanning the area with quick, bird-like jerks of its head. It moved with incredible speed, far faster than its massive descendants ever could.

A low hiss escaped its throat and turned its gaze towards your direction, staring with intelligent, predatory eyes…