[Trade] Flora and Fauna

The court had been… decent hosts. Or at least, that was the nicest thing Apis could call them. She had been less than thrilled with the treatment she had gotten so far- shoved in a cage, interroaged by giant herbivores and much smaller ones with armor, and then shoved out this gate on a mission to gather rare herbs. The cryolophosaurus grumped, nosing at the bag strapped to her hip. Her two other companions seemed less than thrilled- a green utahraptor with short, messy feathers that seemed to be the more happy of the two, and a grumpy, feathered pachycehpalosaurus covered in spots and stripes of various sizes.

“Right… who are you two again? And what are we doing?” The omnivore was the first to break the silence, looking between Apis and the raptor with barely hidden tension. The cryolophosaurus couldn't blame him- she felt much the same.

“Im Apis.” The yellow carnivore answered, before raising her head to scan the jungle around them. It was loud and messy- she was convinced if it wasn't for the instructions given, they already would have been lost. “Not quite sure.”

“Ugh. Did they really send me with a bunch of morons?” The raptor complained. Both the pachy and Apis bristled, but the green carnivore continued to speak all over them. “Im Chlorophyll- plant expert. I was charged with gathering herbs to prove my plant knowledge to the Atlanteans- and I suppose you two were sent with me to carry the loot.” She cast a critical eye over the other two, seemingly finding them lacking. “You never mentioned your name.”

“Oh. Tony.” The omnivore swished his tail, seemingly more nervous under Chlorophylls harsh gaze. “Just where are these herbs located?”

Apis butted in, pointing ahead with her long claws. “The scouts gave me instructions… said they should be about this way, down the path. Said we would know them when we found them… whatever that means.” Everyone down here seemed allergic to giving actual, straight-forward advise to anyone- all the Atlanteans kept mentioning a queen, but were sparse on the details. It was frustrating to no end.

“I’ll know.” The green raptor bragged, tossing her head. “Plant expert- remember? Oh wait, thats right- idiots. Well, either way, follow. The quicker we are, the better they’ll think!” 

Chloro trotted off, leaving Apis and Tony growling angrily behind her. “Suppose she’s right.” Tony muttered, before following. Apis just shook her head. What a weirdo.

It only took a few more minutes of traveling down the path before the raptor halted them. “Here!” She puffed out her feathers, before vanishing into the jungle. Apis and Tony shared an uneasy look, before hesitantly squeezing in after her.

The vines felt awful against Apis’s scales, causing her to shudder and hiss- who knows what was a vine and what was a snake. From Tonys dismayed snorts, she could tell he felt the same.

They came across their wayward third member in a nearby clearing just crawling with dangerous plant life. Tony side-eyed a large red flower that was dripping some kind of red pollen, keeping a wide berth. Apis watched two monkeys chatter high up in the treebranches, shaking her head uncomfortably. In the center of the clearing lay much more normal looking plants- kind of. Long, green, and strangely shaped with a tangy scent that was both pleasant and annoying. Chloro was already gently nudging at the plants, seemingly talking to them in a low, crooning voice. The raptor straightened up once she noticed the other two approaching, sending a smirk their way. 

“Told you. Anyways, these are very delicate, very rare herbs. This one here is used to help wounds heal faster, and this one here enhances ones energy.” Chloro pointed to each plant. 

“Sure, sure… what do we do?” Tony quickly spoke, interrupting what would have surely been a long monolouge about the many different types of plants present. The raptor gave him an offended look, but relented with a huff and a mutter about ignorant fools.

“Dig them up carefully. They are of no use to us with their roots destroyed- the court wants us to bring them back to replant in their gardens. Don't rip the leaves or stems either- plants are very delicate. Keep those claws steady.” 

Apis nodded, not bothering to speak- she doubted a response would have done her any good. Carefully she dropped the bag off of her side, before beginning to nose dirt into it. Tony grumbled again, but moved forward to slowly start scrapping at the dirt with his powerful feet. Once enough of the plant had been exposed, Chloro was quick to swoop in- using her long, nimble claws to carefully scoop up the plant. “How precious!” She cooed, holding a bundle of leaves, roots, and dirt. Apis and Tony shared another look, but complied- the cryolophosaurus offered the bag, and the raptor was quick to place the plant into it. “Just like that! Now, remember- dont hurt any of the plants!” Chloro turned away to go back to nudging nearby plants, leaving Apis and Tony to finish up.

“So… what brought you down here?” Tony offhandedly asked the cryolophosaurus as he reluctantly scraped at the dirt surrounding another one of the herbs. The pachycephalosaurus’s feathers were plastered almost flat to his dome in displeasure.

Apis hummed as she stepped forward, carefully cupping the herb in her claws and making sure to not tear too many roots. “Same thing as you, I'd imagine. Wanted to find out what was happening down here…”

Tony snorted. “I still don't exactly know what's happening.” He admitted softly- neither of them really trusted their third member not to blab on them to gain favor. Thankfully, she was off somewhere else- likely looking at weird carnivorous plants. 

Apis gently heaved the last bit of plant into the bag- the herb patch had been rather small, but the fact that it was the whole plant filled the bag up quite fast. “Hopefully they’re pleased with this.” She muttered. “Where did that raptor get off to?”

“Look what I found!” Speak of the devil. Chloro appeared from the jungle, something leafy clutched in her claws. “Do you think the court would like it?”

Staring at the little snarling, snapping plant clutched in her claws, Apis decided the worst part was the fact that the court would, in fact, love the plant.